Once HumanAn Invader Zim story
by Ojamajo Komatsu
Summary: Zim's old rival finds that Zim and Som-Ri aren't the least of his worries when Som-Ri's old friend Radu shows up. And Dib finds that he needs Radu, in more ways than one.
1. Chapter 1

Section 1: Dib

(A.N: Som-Ri is my own creation. She had pale green skin, long antennae that have bead-like bells on it to warn when her psychic powers are reaching critical levels, her eyes are white, and she can see the future. She was used to minimize casualties during invasions and take-overs. She grew tired of killing innocent aliens and ran away with her robot, Zeze, to Zim on Earth. They fell in love and lived on Earth, trying to be 'normal' humans.I own nothing but this fanfiction, Som-Ri and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. Plus, I understand that my story had a few glitches, and I'm working on getting the story chapter straightened out. Thank you for alerting me)

He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. He had been waiting for Zim to call all day, and still nothing. He sat back in his seat, looking at his computer's black screen, waiting. It had been only two days since Zim had brought Som-Ri back after being kidnapped and raped by one of their own. Dib was the only human who knew their secrete. When Som-Ri had gone missing, Dib had tried to find her, only to have Zim tell him that he had brought her home. When Dib found out that Zim hadn't brought her to a doctor, he tried to get a doctor to see her right at Zim's house. Zim had to reveal their secrete, and swear Dib to secrecy to keep him from calling a doctor. As far as he knew, Som-Ri had only woken up once, when he was visiting them. She had taken the news better than he had expected.

And here he sat, waiting. For some reason, Zim wasn't letting Dib into the house now. He kept saying that Som-Ri needed her rest, so he would call. But so far, Zim hadn't kept his word. He grabbed the soda can off of the desk and took a swig of it. Just as he was setting the can back down, the screen lit up with a little telephone ringing. Dib hit a key on the keyboard and watched as Zim's face filled the screen.

"Hey Dib," Zim said sheepishly as he talked into his communications tech.

"Zim, what kept you?" Dib asked, looking at his new friend.

"Well, Som-Ri woke up today. It was only for a little while, but she woke up. She remembered everything that happened when I saved her," Zim said, looking back into the room, where Dib couldn't see.

Dib could remember when she woke up the first time to find him sitting in a chair by her bed, getting ready to treat her cuts and bruises. She had been fearful about Zim having told Dib their secrete, but Dib had sworn to Zim that he would take their secrete to the grave with him. Being an alien was a big deal, to him anyway. But he had promised not to inform anyone before Zim had confirmed it.

"How is she doing? Is she able to stand yet?" Dib asked.

"Not just yet. She was able to sit up today, but she only collapsed onto the floor when she tried to stand," Zim replied, smiling broadly.

"That's good at least," Dib replied, still not used to Zim without his human disguise.

"I have to go Dib, Som-Ri is calling. I'll call you again when I get the chance," Zim said, looking over his shoulder briefly.

"Sure, yeah. Tell her to not give up if she isn't able to walk right away. It will take time," Dib said, before clicking off his computer.

He sighed, not knowing what to think. He'd done the best he could to help them out, but he was no professional doctor. Plus, she was an alien. Conventional medicine wouldn't really work. And his curiosity was killing him. He wanted to know more about them and about their people. Dib knew that until Som-Ri was completely recovered, Zim would feel better with Dib staying away. He would wait to see if Som-Ri was feeling up to a visit the next time Zim called.

He went downstairs and decided to take a walk. He walked all over the place. When he reached a dead end, he would find another direction to go. His own thoughts didn't last too long on any one topic. They always jumped from one topic to the next. But it was this quiet time that allowed him to straighten things out a little.

But the one thing that seemed to stick in his train of thought the longest was the story of what Som-Ri had done to the people who had kidnapped her. Zim had been caught the second that he had set foot on the main Armada ship. When he was brought into the command center, Som-Ri was seated on a plush cushion chair, bound, bruised and dazed. She didn't seem conscience of her surroundings. There was an Invader there next to her that was very self-assured, but what was his name? Well, these little bells on her antennae began to ring and an explosion happened. When the smoke cleared, Som-Ri was standing with her bounds destroyed. She unbuckled her poncho and unbuttoned her top down to her mark on her chest. Her eyes had apparently changed into a dark grey. But the guards holding Zim had retreated, only his bounds still worked. Well, Som-Ri started to wail on the guy that raped her and didn't let up until he stopped getting up. Then she turned on their leaders. Only Zim screaming her name snapped her out of her weird state of mind. Zim broke his restraints and brought Som-Ri home.

But what was that guy's name? It started with an R and he was supposed to be really freaky. He was supposed to be the best Invader there was and the fastest. He was also different than the others. One eye was almost black it was so dark a blue.

Just as Dib rounded a corner near a grocery store, the name dawns on him. Radu.


	2. Chapter 2

Section 2: Radu

(A.N: The rest of the sections/chapters tend to get a little long. Sorry 'bout that. I own nothing but this fanfiction, Som-Ri and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. I am trying to work out the glitches that have been brought to my attention. I am straightening out the chapters. Enjoy.)

Zim sat back in his chair and looked back at Som-Ri, who was sitting up in bed, looking at him. Her bruises were healing nicely and even the cuts to her face and arms were healing. Her nightgown had fallen off of one of her shoulders and had slipped down to expose her slender shoulder. Even her mark on her chest was slightly visible.

"Dib?" she asked, not so much like disgust like usual.

"Yup. He's been worried about you," Zim said sitting on the bed by her.

"He can come over some time if he wants to," she said, holding his hand.

"I'd rather you get your rest," Zim said, kissing her knuckles.

"Don't tease him. He has been looking for proof this whole time, and now that he has it, he can't share it. And you haven't exactly been good about telling him much either," Som-Ri chuckled, sitting closer to him.

"Well, I need to keep an eye on you. I don't want you to get worse or to get hurt again," Zim said resting his forehead against hers.

"My strong protector," she murmured looking into his eyes.

They leaned in and kissed. But only for a moment before the perimeter alarm went off. Zim growled and looked at the screen that popped out of the wall. It was Radu. The lowlife who had hurt Som-Ri in the first place.

"What is he doing here?" Zim grumbled.

Som-Ri snuggled closer to him, looking at the screen with fear.

"I don't want him here," she buried her face in his jacket.

"I'll see if I can get rid of him," Zim said, gently prying her off of his clothes.

He walked down the stairs and answered the door at the second ring. He opened the door and leaned against the frame, looking at Radu with hate.

"What do you want?" Zim barked.

"I came to see you, Zim," Radu said, looking down at Gir who just happened to be heading upstairs with his little piggy toy.

"Gir, go play with Som-Ri. I'll talk to Radu," Zim said, not taking his eyes off of Radu.

"May I?" Radu indicated to the sofa.

Zim shrugged away from the doorframe and let Radu inside. His little robot Tin fallowed behind him. When Radu sat on the couch, he looked up at Zim, his one red eye and one dark, almost black, blue eye really freaked Zim out. Zim closed the door and stood there.

"So? What do you want?" Zim snapped.

"I wanted to talk to you. To apologize for what I did to you and Som-Ri. I know that she doesn't want to see me, not after what I did to her," Radu said, looking at Zim right in the eyes.

"You think so?" Zim asked rhetorically.

"I felt it necessary to test whether you really, truly loved Som-Ri and not just her powers," Radu said, grimacing.

"So you raped her?" Zim roared, unable to control his hate.

"I know, I know. I crossed many boundaries. Many, many boundaries that I shouldn't have crossed. And I regret what I did to her. Everything that I did. It was the one time that my self-control failed. I wanted to apologize to you and her," Radu said, keeping eye contact with Zim, even after he knew that Zim would rather rip him apart.

Zim remained silent, shaking with either rage or with a wide range of emotions that Radu could understand all too well. Zim searched the floor, grinding his teeth.

"I can't fully forgive everything you did, but I can forgive you kidnapping her," Zim said, looking Radu in the eye.

"I would ask for nothing more. I have already asked for too much," Radu said, looking away.

Just as Zim was about to say something, there was a loud thump from upstairs. Zim and Radu looked up. Zim swore and ran up the stairs faster than Radu could blink. Radu pricked his antennae and just managed to catch what Zim was saying.

"You need your rest. Your legs are still a little weak," Zim said.

"I know, but I need you. I can't stand you being gone. I feel so alone. Like my insides are collapsing," came Som-Ri's voice.

"Radu will leave soon. Just go back to bed and I'll be up soon," Zim said comfortingly, "Gir, get her back to bed, and try to keep her there."

"Yes, master," came the little robot's voice.

Zim came back down the stairs, stopping halfway to look back up only briefly. He stood before Radu.

"Look, I have something I need to do, so I need you to leave," Zim said, crossing his arms.

"Yes, of course. I wouldn't want to upset Som-Ri any more than I already have. But, before I go, I want you to know that I am living on Earth now. A few blocks away. You don't have to tell Som-Ri," Radu said, rising from the couch.

"What?" Zim breathed the word as his arms fell from their crossed position.

"I can't explain it. I feel a certain… pull towards Earth," Radu got a far-away look to his eyes, "Well, I'll be seeing you around. Oh, and if she keeps having trouble standing, give me a call. I'll help however I can."

With that, Radu passed Zim a data card with his contact info on it, patted Zim's shoulder and left. Radu rather enjoyed the fact that he was taller than Zim. But he left Zim standing in the living room, looking at him with shock on his face as Radu walked out onto the street.

As Radu walked out onto the hard pavement of the road, a hologram cloaked him, giving him human skin, chilling blue eyes, and black hair that was tied into a loose ponytail at the base of his neck. His Irken clothes were replaced by black clothes and a black long trench coat. Tin turned into a Rottweiler and walked at his side.

Radu looked back at Zim's house only once, getting the feeling that he had done the right thing, even though it was not in his personality. But there was something about Earth that just made him want to stay, and it wasn't just Earth, it was this city. Something in this city made Radu want to stay, but what it was, he couldn't say. He shrugged it off as he continued toward his new home.


	3. Chapter 3

Section 3: An Accident.

(A/N: All I own is this Fanfiction, Som-Ri and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. I am working on a few glitches that has happened with my chapters.)

Dib rolled over on his bed, awakened from his sleep by his computer beeping. As he moved, he knocked several empty cans of soda onto the floor. He grumbles to himself about cleaning up one of these days as he fumbles around on his nightstand for his glasses. As he stumbled toward his desk and slipped his glasses on, he almost tripped over a box that was lying on the floor. Dib hit a few keys on his computer and up came an image of Zim.

"Sorry. Did I wake you?" Zim asked, looking at Dib's bed-head.

"Not really. I was just getting ready to get up," he replied, pulling on a clean t-shirt.

"Zim, is that Dib?" Som-Ri's voice came from behind Zim.

"Yeah, I'm inviting him over today," Zim says behind him.

Som-Ri slips her hands over his shoulders and looked into the camera. Her bruises looked good, almost gone.

"Hey Dib. How are you?" she asked, smiling at him.

"Fine. And you? How are you doing?" Dib asked, rubbing his eye a little.

"Better, thank you. Zim, ask him already," she said, planting a kiss on Zim's cheek.

"I'm getting to it," Zim scowled looking at her.

"Don't take too long. Poor Dib looks sleepy," Som-Ri winked at Dib before retreating from view.

"You're welcome to come over today if you like. Som-Ri is doing much better today," Zim said grinning at Dib.

"Cool. I'll be over in an hour. Do you need anything while I'm out?" he asked, looking for some clean pants.

"No thank you, but thanks for the offer. See you in an hour," Zim said hanging up.

Dib hit a key on the keyboard and powered down his computer. He finished dressing and headed out. He could hardly wait to see them both. And finally, all his questions would be answered. He almost ran all the way to their house. It was nice to not be attacked by the gnomes for once in his life. In fact, Gir answered the door.

"Hi!" Gir almost yelled as he stood there with an icy in his hand.

"Master has been expecting you," Zeze said behind Gir, moving him to let Dib inside.

"Thanks," Dib said walking in.

Zeze lead him up the stairs to one of the bedrooms. Zeze knocked briefly before opening the door. Som-Ri was sitting on the bed and Zim next to her. They both looked up and smiled. Zim stood and went over to meet him.

"Thanks Zeze. Hey Dib," Zim said, dismissing Zeze.

"Hey Zim. Hey Som-Ri. How are you two?" Dib asked.

"Good, thank you. I'm glad Zim finally let you come over," Som-Ri smiled at him and went to stand.

"No, no. You don't need to stand on my account," Dib said, trying to let her rest.

"It's alright. I'm perfectly capable of standing," She said, standing and walking over.

"She just started walking this morning," Zim said moving to her side and wrapping an arm around her waist.

"That's good to hear. I was beginning to wonder if I needed to swear a real doctor to silence and bring them here," Dib chuckled.

"I just needed a little time and love," Som-Ri snuggled her head into Zim's neck.

"Come, we can talk downstairs," Zim said moving toward the nightstand.

Dib looked on in confusion and then amazement as the nightstand lifted up and revealed something similar to an elevator. Zim and Som-Ri stepped inside and waited for Dib. He reluctantly stepped inside and looked around. They moved through a long tunnel before coming to a stop in Zim's underground lab. Dib looked around in awe as Zim and Som-Ri lead the way into the large room. For the first time, Dib wasn't being chased by something. He could explore as much as he wanted.

Zim walked Som-Ri over to a large computer that seemed to be in the process of being upgraded. He whispered something to her and sat her down before the thing. She looked at him and shook her head. Zim scratched his head a moment, and then whispered something else. She looked at him doubtfully. Zim sighed before Dib made it over to them.

"Zim, I'm serious. It's not a good idea. I have a bad feeling about this," she said grasping his hand firmly.

"It'll be fine. Dib and I can go and do our thing, while you and Zeze do this. What could happen?" Zim asked tilting his head.

"Zim, be careful. Something just isn't sitting well with me," she said looking him in the eye.

"What's wrong?" Dib asked, looking from one to the other.

"Som-Ri says that I shouldn't take you over to see the combat room. That something bad might happen if I do," Zim said shrugging.

"Zim, please," Som-Ri pleaded.

"We'll be fine. I'm tough and Zim won't hurt me anymore than I would hurt him," Dib chuckled.

"Som-Ri, we'll be fine. I can't think of anything that would happen," Zim said kissing her knuckle.

"Be careful," she grasped his hand a little harder before letting it go.

Zim lead Dib around the corner and down a long hallway to a large empty room.

"I'm going to show you a few Irken moves. Nothing too fancy since you will never be invading planets or anything," Zim said folding his arms confidently.

"Oh really?" Dib mocked being fearful.

Dib tackled Zim to the floor and tried to twist his arm behind his back, only to discover that Zim was double jointed and could easily flip his arm out of Dib's hands. With one subtle little twist of his torso, he was able to turn around under Dib and move his body enough to roll Dib off. Dib looked at Zim in amazement.

"How did you do that?" he asked.

"All Irken's are double jointed in just about every part of their bodies, and it makes us more agile than you humans," he replied, cracking his shoulder.

"No way," Dib murmured, crouching low to the floor.

Zim spaced out his feet and bent his knees. Dib tumbled forwards and tried to knock his feet out from under him, but Zim nimbly evaded it and grabbed Dib's leg. He attempted to swing Dib around and throw him, but Dib merely rolled himself in Zim's grip, freeing himself. Zim tried to make a grab for him, but Dib neatly dodged and wrapped his legs around one of Zim's ankles. With a little jerk he sent Zim toppling over. While Zim was dazed from hitting the floor, he tried to pin him down. Just when Dib was sure he'd won, Zim's mechanical legs came shooting out from under him and repelled him. Dib pushed himself up on his elbows just as Zim pounced on him and pinned him down. Dib wiggled and strained, but it seemed that Zim wasn't going to let go easily. Dib gathered his strength and twisted, rolling on top of him. Zim managed to roll feet over head and throw off Dib. Dib rolled over just as Zim tried to jump on him. Dib was just able to get out of the way in time and grabbed Zim's foot. He gave a tug and sent Zim toppling over. Zim swung his foot over and locked it under Dib's chin. They lay there locked together, neither one of them willing to give any ground. Finally, after they both caught their breath, Zim gave a little tug and pushed Dib away.

"How come you never did any of this while I was chasing you?" Dib asked, panting slightly.

"No human can contort his body that way," Zim replied.

"Some can," Dib replied.

"Normally?" Zim asked.

"Not generally," Dib shrugged.

Zim charged at Dib and tackled him, nearly knocking him over. Dib wrapped his arms around Zim and latched on. Zim twisted but Dib held fast. Zim gave a little grunt and then his back started to bend backwards. Dib watched in amazement as Zim's feet appeared in front of his face. They clamped onto his head and began to push his head back until it became difficult to breathe and hold Zim at the same time. Finally, Dib let go and fell backwards as Zim tumbled away.

"No Fair!" Dib panted, looking at Zim.

"It's totally fair. It's not my fault that humans can't bend that way," Zim said smirking.

Dib made a grab for Zim, grabbing his ankle. He pulled Zim down. As Zim tried to get clear of Dib, Dib reached out and grabbed Zim's pod. All movement stopped when both of them heard a little pop and Dib sat there with Zim's pod in his hands.

Zim whirled around as Dib looked from the pod to Zim, shocked. Dib blinked a few times.

"I-I didn't know it could come off," Dib said, looking down at the pod.

Before Zim could answer, the pod attached itself to Dib's chest. Dib yelled in alarm as he felt it latching into his tissue. Zim leapt forward and grabbed the pod. He hit one of the spots and pried it off of Dib. Zim held it up to his back and grunted when it latched onto him. Dib looked at Zim, then down at the two round bloody marks on his shirt.

"I was not expecting that to happen," Zim breathed, looking at Dib.

"Shit! Is this what Som-Ri was talking about?" Dib asked, the adrenaline flooding through his veins.

"I don't know," Zim said looking at the spots on Dib's shirt.

"What's going to happen, if anything?" Dib asked, his breath still not slowing down.

"I don't know," Zim repeated, shaking his head.

"Has this ever happened before?" Dib asked.

"I don't know! It's never happened with me before," Zim said looking at him.

"Maybe I should go. I don't want Som-Ri getting mad at us," Dib said standing up and looking down at his now ruined shirt.

"We should tell her now. If we don't, she'll have a vision and then she'll get even madder," Zim said standing as well.

"If you say so," Dib shrugged.

Zim lead the way back to the main part of the lab. Som-Ri was staring at the screen intently, her fingers flying deftly across the keys. Zim didn't even say a word before she looked over, her eyes immediately falling on the marks on Dib's shirt. She moved so quickly from her seat to them that Dib took a step back when she just appeared before him. She pulled his coat out of the way and grabbed his shirt. She lifted his shirt and looked at the two round marks that were still on his chest, and still bleeding a little.

"What did you do? Zim! I told you to be careful! What happened?" Som-Ri was shouting at both of them, even though she addressed Zim.

"Well, we were-" Zim started.

"Look at what you've done! Dib! You're bleeding!" She interrupted him, not even stopping long enough for him to get a word in.

"It was an accident," Dib shouted back at her, trying to pull his shirt down.

"Dib! Zim! Look at his chest! What happened!" Som-Ri said again.

"We were wrestling a little and my pod came off," Zim said pulling her off of Dib's shirt.

"Then it just latched on. It happened really quickly too," Dib added, pulling his shirt down and straitening it out.

"I told you! I told you two to be careful and now look at what's happened," Som-Ri wasn't yelling as much, but she looked like she was going to cry.

"What's the big deal? I'll put some Band-Aids on it and it'll be fine," Dib shrugged.

"But what if it has some kind of effect on you?" she asked.

"I'm not sure if anything will happen or not. I've never heard of anything like this happening," Zim said wrapping his arms around her.

"We could at least stop the bleeding," Som-Ri pushed out of his arms and went over to the computer she had been working on.

She hit a few keys and grabbed something that came out of part of the wall. She pointed at the chair.

"Sit," she commanded.

Dib obeyed and sat down. Som-Ri opened the case and took out some kind of cloth and lifted up his shirt again. She dabbed at the wounds, making Dib flinch as she touched them. She put that down and pulled out a vile of green fluid. She pulled out a syringe and filled it with a little of the fluid.

"What is that?" Dib asked.

"A little antibiotic. Granted, it's for Irken's, but it'll kill most kinds of bacteria and keep you healthy," Som-Ri said, injecting it into his arm.

She pulled out some kind of gauze wrapping and another cloth pad. She placed the pad over the two circles and began to wrap his chest. When she was all done, she looked at him and put her hands on her hips.

"I expect you to take it easy for the next day or two," she said, before cleaning up.

"How about that, eh? She's the one taking care of you now," Zim chuckled.

"I'm not done with you, Zim. We'll talk about this later," she said darkly as she looked at him.

"Well, I should be going home then. I'll be seeing you guys later," Dib said walking over to the transport.

As he walked down the sidewalk, he got the strangest feeling that something big was about to happen. His chest felt oddly different too. It also felt a little itchy too. He shrugged it all off and just continued on home. So much for his questions being answered. There would be time later.


	4. Chapter 4

Section 4: The Claim

(A/N: All I own is this fanfiction, Som-Ri, and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. I am working on a glitch that has happened with my story and chapters. Thank you for bring patient.)

Radu knocked on Zim's door, not knowing why he was even bothering to see him. It was quite obvious that Zim hated him. But for some reason, he got the strangest feeling that he was meant to be here today. Som-Ri opened the door, then froze. He lowered his antennae and immediately knew that it had been a mistake to come.

"ZIM!" she screamed stumbling backwards from the door that swung wide open.

"Wait a minute. I'm not here to attack you or anything. I'm here to see Zim," he tried to explain, but Zeze put herself firmly between him and Som-Ri.

Zim ran into the room and pulled her to him. He looked up and saw Radu, and his eyes clouded with hate.

"What do you want?" Zim barked.

"I came to check in with you two. I mean, I was worried about you guys," Radu tried to put into words what he was feeling, but it wasn't really working.

"," Som-Ri was murmuring into Zim's chest.

"Radu, why are you here?" Zim asked.

"I don't know. I got this feeling this morning that I should be here. I can't explain it," he shrugged and closed the door behind him.

"Radu, you shouldn't be here," Zim said, holding her close.

"Please Zim. I promise you that I won't touch Som-Ri or even come near her," Radu held his hands up in defense and tried to appear innocent, which was hard given his looks.

"Zim," Som-Ri gave Radu a little tentative look before burying her face in Zim's shoulder.

"Just go down to the lab Radu. I'll deal with you in a minute," Zim said, frustrated.

Radu nodded and quickly slunk off to the kitchen and down to the lab. He stood near the transport and waited, Tin by his side. He had no idea why he came. Som-Ri was bound to be around when he visited. It was inevitable that they would see each other. If it weren't for the fact that he felt compelled to come today, he wouldn't even be here.

Zim came down the transport and looked at him. He sighed and rubbed his forehead. He looked a little tired and stressed out. Whatever Zim had been doing the past few days had really taken its toll on him.

"I'm sorry, Zim," Radu said, not knowing what else to say.

"Radu, it was bound to happen. But I really wish you hadn't come today," Zim leaned against the wall.

"Why? Did something happen?" Radu asked, suddenly feeling more like himself.

"Well, not really. But yesterday Dib was over and something did happen. Som-Ri's been nagging at me for it since it happened," Zim replied, rubbing his forehead again.

Radu was about to ask what happened when one of Zim's computers began to beep and ring like a phone. Then a voice came on saying it was a call from Dib. Zim went to his computer and sat down, hitting a key to bring up the image of his friend. Radu had never seen the human before, but somehow, he felt a strong connection with this person he had never met. Dib looked at Zim. He still looked a little sleepy, yet maybe a little pale.

"What's up Dib? How are you feeling? You look a little pale," Zim asked, sitting back in his chair.

"Well, I've been better. My chest is really itchy and my head is a little fuzzy. Maybe I have a fever," Dib's voice trailed off a little toward the end as he placed a hand to his forehead and looked away from the screen.

"What did you just say? Your chest is itchy and your head is fuzzy? Where do you live boy?" Radu said leaning over Zim's shoulder and fixing Dib with an intent stare.

"Huh? Who's that?" Dib asked, looking at Radu with confusion.

"Where do you live?" Radu asked again, getting impatient.

"Why do you want to know?" Zim asked, looking up at him.

"Zim, where does he live? This is important!" Radu snapped looking from Dib to Zim.

"He lives a block away. He's got a telescope in his backyard that you can't miss. Why?" Zim said even more confused than Dib.

"Zim, who is that?" Dib asked, trying to get a better look at Radu.

"You stay where you are! I'll be right there," Radu said turning and running for the transport.

"Hey! Radu!" Zim called after him to no avail.

Radu was already out the front door and in his human disguise when Zim tried to call his communicator. Radu let it ring. Tin ran at his Master's ankles also disguised. He ran as fast as his long legs would carry him over the pavement. He saw the telescope long before he ever saw the house. From what he'd gathered from Zim, Dib's father was an important scientist and was hardly ever home. He ran to the front door and rang the doorbell. He caught his breath quickly and was surprised to see a girl answer the door. It must have been his sister Gaz. She fixed him with a glare that he did not expect from a human.

"Yes, I am here to see your brother Dib," Radu said in as nice a voice as he could.

"Who're you?" she barked.

"I'm a friend of Zim's and Som-Ri's. They mentioned your brother wasn't feeling well and asked me to see if he was okay. I'm a doctor," Radu lied very convincingly; he hoped it would work on her too.

"Whatever," she said letting Radu and Tin into the house.

He walked to the bottom of the stairs and looked up them.

"His room is the first one on you left," Gaz said sitting on the couch with her Game Slave.

"Thank you," Radu said looking up the stairs again.

"Whatever," she grunted.

Radu walked up the stairs with Tin at his heels. When Radu found the door, he knocked. There was silence for a moment before he heard a response.

"Who is it?" Dib called weakly.

"A doctor," Radu said opening the door.

The room was a little messy, littered with empty soda cans and empty food wrappers, empty boxes, and dirty clothes. The sight was nothing special and Radu had, in fact, seen worse. Dib was laying on his bed clothed in a blue t-shirt and boxers. He took one look at Radu and tried to sit up.

"You needn't get up, Dib. I know what's wrong with you," Radu said pushing Dib back down onto the mattress.

"What the hell? Who are you?" Dib demanded, raising himself up on his elbows.

"Oh, yes. Well, you wouldn't know me," Radu said clapping his hands and his human disguise fell away.

Dib's face seemed to fall. Then recognition seemed to take over as he looked at Radu's eyes. Tin took a step next to his Master as his disguise fell away too.

"Master, the human is in a critical position," he said looking at Dib.

"I know, Tin. Thank you," Radu said dully.

"A-are you…Radu?" Dib asked looking him completely over now.

"Yes, I am. I see Zim told you of the incident?" Radu asked, not all that surprised.

"You were the one who raped Som-Ri!" Dib shouted.

"Keep your voice down. I don't want your sister coming up here. It's bad enough that it happened, I don't want to wipe your sister's memories," Radu waved a hand at Dib, shushing him.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Dib shouted anyways.

"Dib, Dib, Dib. I'm here because of what you said to Zim," Radu said, shaking his head, "You said your chest was itchy and your head was fuzzy. Let me see."

"See what?" Dib asked alarmed.

"Your chest. I know what's going on but I want to see how far along you are," Radu said lifting up Dib's shirt.

The bandages that Som-Ri had wrapped on yesterday were already stained by some kind of a pussy looking fluid. Radu made short work of the bandages and the padding underneath. The places where Zim's pod had attached itself were slightly raised, angry red and oozing puss.

"Whoa! It didn't look like that yesterday," Dib said looking down at the marks.

"I thought so. Zim's pod attached itself didn't it," Radu stated wiping up a little of the puss and rubbing it between his fingers.

"Yeah, but I don't understand. What does that have to do with the fact that the wound got infected?" Dib asked not fully understanding.

"Dib, and invader's pod contains the DNA and the blood of the invader who owns it. Zim's pod has his DNA and blood flowing in it. Mine has my DNA and blood in it. When his pod mistook you for Zim, it attached to you and pumped some of Zim's DNA into you. It's changing you into an Irken," Radu said sitting on Dib's bed.

"What? How?" Dib asked trying to sit up.

He was suddenly over-come by intense dizziness and collapsed into his pillow. Radu put a hand to his forehead and shook his head.

"It's already begun. The Irken DNA is stamping out any human DNA in you. Your DNA is the first thing to go, then your blood will be replaced, your organs will implode and be replaced, your skeletal system will be replaced, your eyes will change, your skin will melt and grow back as Irken skin, and you'll grow antennae," Radu said looking at Dib's eyes, "Nice color to have too. No other Irken had eyes that are an amber color. Attractive, sexy eyes."

"My organs will implode? Hold on! I don't want any of this to happen!" Dib exclaimed, slapping Radu's hand away from his face.

"Well, no one does, at first," Radu said shrugging.

"'At first?' What do you mean 'at first'?" Dib asked, trying again to sit up.

"Well, it isn't uncommon for an Irken to change a local alien species that has desired characteristics or has an Irken-like spirit into an Irken. But I'm guessing with you, it wasn't planned. And for Tallests sake, lay down. Your body is changing and using a lot of energy to do it. Think of it like a head cold or the flu," Radu said pushing Dib back down onto the mattress.

"Why didn't Zim say something before?" Dib's face contorted into panic.

"Zim wouldn't know. This is his first planet," Radu chuckled at this.

"Master, this human is changing slowly. Full change is estimated to occur in five days," Tin said standing near his master.

"Five days? My, you will be suffering a long time. I can't have that now can I?" Radu said more to himself than to Dib.

Radu grabbed Dib's hand and isolated his index finger. He brought Dib's finger up to his mouth and bit down of the very tip of it.

"OOOOWWWWW!" Dib screamed trying to draw his finger back.

"Don't be such a baby. Look," Radu said turning Dib's finger so he could see the blood that was starting to form on the wound.

It wasn't red, like human blood. Instead, it had turned into a green color that could have been blood. Radu smiled and bit down on the tip of one of his gloves. He pulled it off and bit down on one of his fingers until the same green started to ooze out of the wound.

"As I said, Dib, it had already started. First your DNA is changed, then your blood. Now drink," Radu held his bleeding finger near Dib's mouth.

"What? Are you crazy? I'm not drinking your blood!" Dib tried to pull away, but Radu held him firmly with a look of annoyance.

"Dib, you are hardly in a position to argue. You are going to change into an Irken, like it or not. Being bound to me is not a bad thing. I will be able to administer medical aid and keep you safe, but I need you to drink," Radu tried to keep his voice level, but it was getting tiresome.

"What do you mean, 'bound'?" Dib asked, looking from Radu's finger to Radu.

"Like Zim and Som-Ri," Radu said shoving his finger into Dib's mouth and then putting Dib's finger into his own.

Dib tried to spit Radu's finger out, but Radu was not having any of it. Dib could feel Radu's blood on his tongue. It tasted almost like human blood, but there was another flavor to it that he couldn't quite place. Radu was already drinking his blood, licking it from his finger like candy. Dib tried not to swallow, but it was getting harder to breath with his mouth filling up with blood and saliva. Without meaning too, Dib swallowed, and felt something in him change. It felt like he could feel something outside of himself. Radu sighed and looked at Dib fondly, withdrawing his finger from Dib's mouth and giving Dib's finger one final lick to help stop the bleeding.

"Now it is done. No one else can touch you like me, no one else can become intimate with you but me. You are mine, Dib, and I am yours. Until one of us dies," Radu said stroking Dib's cheek fondly.


	5. Chapter 5

Section 5: Changes

(A/N: I own this fanfiction, Som-Ri and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. I am working on a glitch that has happened with my chapters. Thank you)

Radu put down his drink as he looked over the data pad he held in his other hand. It held Dib's stats on them and his bios. The most painful of all the changes were going to happen, but it wasn't going to happen for a day or two. He had asked Dib to move in with him, since they were now bound and Dib was going to change. He had refused. Dib was at least willing to think about it by the end of their call. He was already aching to hold Dib and claim him. He shook himself and tried to push the images of what he wanted to do to Dib out of his head. He didn't like not having Dib with him now. It had been hard to sleep that night without him.

Radu looked down at the data pad. Dib's health was being badly affected by the change. He was already running a fever and was getting dizzy just trying to sit up. Soon, Dib wouldn't be able to even lift an arm or finger. Radu had to do something to help him.

He was about to call Tin when his computer started to beep about an incoming call from Zim. Radu sighed and put down the data pad and sat before one of his computers. He hit a key and Zim appeared before him. Som-Ri was standing just behind him, looking at him.

"To what do I owe this wondrous occasion?" Radu asked, folding his hands before him.

"How's Dib? You took off yesterday so quickly I didn't have the chance to ask you what was happening. Now Dib isn't picking up. What's going on?" Zim asked.

"You remember when your pod attached to him, yes?" Radu asked, leaning back in his chair.

"Of course. How could we forget?" Som-Ri replied snidely.

"Well, your DNA was pumped inside him, Zim. And now, he's changing into an Irken. To make sure he made it through okay, and had someone to help him in the end, I claimed him," Radu explained aloofly.

"You WHAT!" Zim roared.

"Zim, calm yourself. Radu, do you have any idea what you've done?" Som-Ri asked resting a hand on Zim's shaking shoulder.

"Neither of you would have taken care of him. I feel a sort of connection to him. Do you remember when you first bonded? Or maybe, even before that, where neither of you wanted to be without the other and being apart was like your body was being crushed?" Radu asked, looking at them.

"Well, yes. Not long after we first met," Som-Ri said, her voice becoming gentle and kind.

"Are you saying that that's what happened yesterday? That's why you raced out of here?" Zim asked suddenly losing his animosity.

"Yes. The moment I saw him on your computer, I knew that he was the reason why I had come to Earth to stay. But it was also that when he started to mention how he wasn't feeling well, he was talking about symptoms in the early stages of the change from something to Irken," Radu explained simply, wanting only to hang up the phone and see Dib again, even though he may not answer his call.

"You've seen many species change before?" Som-Ri asked, tilting her head sweetly.

"Yes, on many other planets with many other species. I don't know how this will affect Dib, since a human has never been changed, but at the same time, I'm not surprised that you've never heard of this happening. Som-Ri has never invaded a planet before, and this is Zim's first planet," Radu pointed out casually.

"I've never heard of anything being changed into an Irken," Zim said.

"I'm not surprised though. Often, I would watch the Tallests giving instructions to Irkens that had different colored eyes and antennae that I'd never seen before or since. It's possible that these Irkens were ones that had been changed from another species," Som-Ri said thinking back.

"Radu, I'm just worried about Dib. He's our friend now and we don't want him to suffer because of us. We want to keep him safe," Zim said.

"Well, then you shouldn't have let it happen. The moment the pod attached itself, the damage was done. There was and is no way that it could be reversed," Radu said looking at Zim pointedly.

"I-I didn't know," Zim stammered looking guilty.

"Don't worry. Dib will be fine. He has me after all," Radu said tapping his fingers against the arm rest.

"After all, Dib would need an invader like you to keep him safe," Som-Ri murmured, hitting a key on their end of the connection and hanging up.

Radu stared at the black screen for a moment. He had gotten what Som-Ri was saying. He was far from the ideal protector. He had brought the ruination of many different species and killed hundreds of aliens. How could he ever protect someone when his own hands were stained with blood? But then again, who better to protect someone than someone who fought like they had nothing to lose?

"Tin, I feel that we should visit Dib. Camouflage the ship as an ambulance," he said to the robot that stood by the desk.

"Yes, Master," Tin said saluting before doing as he was told.

Radu leaned back in his chair, thinking a moment. How would he ever convince Dib to move in with him? While Dib is going through the change, it is simple to have him stay in his house, but Dib would never agree to stay after the change was complete. While Radu thought this, his heart felt heavy with the knowledge that Dib might never feel the same.

His computer started to ring again, and this pulled Radu from his thoughts. He looked at the screen and hit a key on the control pad, pulling up an image of Dib. He looked worse than the day before. His eyelids had become purple-ish, his skin much paler and seemed to be covered in a sheen of sweat, and he was breathing heavily. Radu leaning in toward the screen.

"Dib! What happened? Are you okay!" Radu couldn't keep the panic in him down.

Seeing Dib in that condition made him worry. It almost made him sick, his insides constricting; and he didn't like it. Dib tried to smile, to comfort him, but it looked taught and like he was trying not to show his pain.

"I'm not doing so good, Radu. Remember when you told me yesterday to call if I got worse? I have. My fever is a lot worse now, and my body won't respond normally. I was barely able to get to the computer," Dib said clutching at his chest.

"You stay in your room. I'm coming to get you. Just don't move," Radu said, rising as he said it.

"Okay," Dib breathed as Radu cut the feed.

He rushed to his transport and commanded it bring him to his ship. Tin had just finished with the ship. He jumped into the cockpit and fired it up with a roar. Tin just managed to climb inside before the hatch shut. Radu sped his way to Dib's house and parked in front of the house. He ran to the door and rang the doorbell, tapping his finger against his human disguise's pants. Gaz opened the door.

"I've come to take your brother to my clinic. He has gotten much worse and I need to keep him under constant surveillance," Radu said as calmly as he could.

"Sure, take him," Gaz said letting him pass.

He took the steps three at a time and burst into Dib's room without knocking. True to what Radu had told him, he hadn't moved from the chair before the computer. He looked at Radu and smiled weakly. Radu was at his side in a second, clutching him closely to his body and feeling his forehead. It almost hurt to touch it.

"Tin! Find him some pants and a coat! Hang in there Dib. I'll get you home, then everything will be okay," Radu tried to keep his voice level, but he found it hard to remain clam when Dib was in this state.

"It's really hot," Dib panted.

"I know, Dib, I know. Just hold on a little longer," Radu soothed, stroking Dib's hair.

Tin came over that second with a pair of black pants and one of Dib's coats. Radu pulled them on carefully, then lifted Dib up into his arms with care. He walked quickly down the stairs with Tin close behind. Radu didn't even pause long enough to answer Gaz's question when she asked if Dib would ever be back. If Radu could have his way, he would never let Dib come back to a family that didn't even care about him. It filled Radu with a rage that he hadn't felt in many months. It filled his every muscle and his very being, blocking all other thoughts besides wanting to kill Dib's sister as she sat, unconcerned, on the couch. Dib grabbed onto his shirt, snapping him out of his sudden rage. Radu clutched Dib closer to him as he walked down the walkway to his ship. He climbed back inside his ship and cradled Dib in his lap. He put the ship on auto-pilot and let the ship do the rest.

While his ship sped them toward his home, he looked down at Dib. His breathing was still in short pants. Tin sat behind his Master, doing a vital scan of Dib to see just what was happening inside him. Radu felt panic worm its way into him. He had seen countless aliens changed, and knew what to expect. But Dib was human, and no human had ever been changed before. He would have to rely on his past knowledge of changes to help Dib.

As soon as the ship touched down, Radu was carrying Dib's weakened body inside. It took Radu only a second of deliberation to determine that he was going to put Dib in his bed. Tin trotted at his heels. As Radu kicked open his bedroom door, he called for the computer to set up an emergency medical station and link up with Dib. A series of metal arms ended with medical equipment descended from the ceiling and walls, setting themselves up around the room, while others connected right to Dib as Radu laid him down on the bed.

"Master, the human's lungs and heart are beginning to change," Tin said as Radu checked all the tubes and wires.

"Both at the same time?" Radu exclaimed, feeling unprepared.

"Yes, Master," Tin replied, aiding his Master in checking the systems that were linking with Dib.

"Dib? Dib, can you hear me?" Radu looked down at Dib.

"It's hard to breath," his voice was no louder than a whisper.

"I know. Your body is changing, and it's not going to be easy for you. I'm going to speed up the change," Radu said, reaching behind him and detaching his pod.

He held it up to Dib and let it attach itself to Dib's chest, where Zim's pod had. Dib cried out as it secured itself. Radu stroked Dib's hair as comfortingly as he could while Dib writhed in pain. Radu pressed a spot on the pod and detached it from Dib, then reattached it to himself.

"W-why did you d-do that?" Dib asked breathlessly, as he tried to look at Radu.

"The amount of DNA that infected you would make you change over the course of at least three agonizing days. This makes sure that you should change in just three hellish hours," Radu said, grabbing Dib's hand and stroking it.

"Radu, I-" Dib started screaming before he could finish his sentence.

"Subject 'Dib' is experiencing a change of all internal organs and tissues," An overhead computer reported over Dib's pain filled screams.

As Radu sat beside him, holding his hand and trying his best not to lose his mind, he also secretly knew that he could do little more than give Dib some anesthetic. And that's just what he did. It calmed Dib down a little, but with his insides changing and his very being changing, there would be no comfort. He hated this feeling of helplessness. He also hated how he could do nothing to stop Dib from being in pain, but he could protect Dib from future pain. Radu stroked Dib's head, and was horrified when a clump of hair came off in his hand.

"Dib, if you can hear me, I promise that nothing will ever hurt you again. I promise on my life, nothing will hurt you," Radu swore as his eyes stung with tears he'd never shed before.

About an hour into the change, Dib's insides were finishing reforming. Another computer started to beep, alerting about an incoming call from Zim and Som-Ri. Radu really didn't want to answer, not wanting to leave Dib's side.

"Computer, to me," Radu said, looking up as the screen came from the wall over to him.

"Radu? Who's that screaming?" Som-Ri asked, as her face came into view.

"It's Dib. He's changing," Radu looked down at Dib, still screaming on the bed.

"That's Dib? Poor guy. How long is he going to scream?" Zim asked, just over her shoulder.

"About another two hours maybe," Radu said, looking up at them.

"Two hours?" Zim asked incredulously.

"Radu, are you okay?" she asked.

"I-I don't know," Radu stammered and rested his head in his hand.

"You said you've seen this before," Zim said, alarmed.

"I have, in countless species. But I never had any connection to the others, and none of them were human. None of them were Dib," Radu replied looking at Dib.

"He'll be fine, Radu," Som-Ri said comfortingly.

"I'm not so sure anymore," Radu said, getting teary again.

"Radu, look at me. He'll be fine," Som-Ri said as Radu looked at her.

"Y-you saw it?" Radu asked, his voice filled with hope.

"He'll be fine," she replied.

"We were just calling to make sure everything was okay. We were worried," Zim said.

"Radu, have hope," Som-Ri said before they hung up.

Radu looked at Dib, and couldn't help but smile.

"When it's all over, I'll be so glad," he said, resting his forehead against Dib's hand.


	6. Chapter 6

Section 6: The New Dib

(A/N: All I own is this fanfiction, Som-Ri and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. I'm working on a few glitches that has happened with my chapters...Still)

Everything hurt. Not badly, but it felt sore. Dib opened his eyes a little at a time, blinking them slowly to clear the blurriness. There was medical equipment all over the place, an IV in one arm and he was hooked to a heart monitor. It was beeping steadily, letting him know that his new organs were working. He looked to his left and saw Radu sitting in a chair, sleeping with his head resting on his shoulder. In one hand was Dib's glasses. Dib looked at the glasses a moment before it dawned on him. He could see without his glasses. He reached up to his face with one shaky hand and felt where his glasses should be. He didn't even really have a nose. He looked at his hand. He only had three fingers. And his skin was a soft green. Dib groaned with the pain he felt in his muscles. In that instant, Radu jolted awake, sitting up a little and looking at Dib.

"You're awake! How are you feeling?" Radu asked relieved and worried at the same time.

"I'm so sore," Dib croaked with a dry throat.

"Well, you did just change species. Hold on," Radu said, grabbing some form of liquid from a side table.

He helped Dib to drink a little of it. It was sweet and gave Dib a warm feeling.

"What was that?" he asked, as Radu put the glass down.

"A traditional Irken drink. I figured that you should get a little taste for your new culture," Radu smiled a little as he looked at Dib.

"I don't need my glasses," Dib said, looking down at them in Radu's hand.

"Hm? Oh, no, you don't. Irken's have much better eyesight than human's do. You can still use glasses for your human disguise, since people know you to have them," Radu fingered the glasses before setting them on the nightstand.

"Radu, what do I look like?" Dib asked, almost too afraid to ask.

"More beautiful than I thought you'd be," Radu smiled fondly and held up a mirror.

He had no hair, and his eyes were still the same color as before, only they looked more like Radu's eyes, Irken eyes. He even had antennae. Ones similar to Radu's only his almost looked like diamonds on the ends. His skin was fair and smooth. His face was not sharp or pointy, it was gently sloped in all the right places, making him gentle and, indeed, good looking.

"You knew I would look like this?" Dib asked, looking at Radu.

"I had a feeling, but you turned out far better than I ever could have imagined. And I couldn't have made you any sexier if I had made you myself," he replied kissing Dib's hand.

"What now?" Dib asked, his eyes half closing.

"I'm going to let you rest a little. Your body is still adjusting, and there is only so much your pod is able to do right now," Radu said, stroking Dib's forehead.

"My…pod?" Dib asked sleepily, struggling to keep his eyes open.

"Later Dib. Get some sleep," Radu kissed Dib's eyes closed and was glad when he finally fell asleep.

Radu fell back into the chair too tired to even care that his computer was beeping, alerting him of an incoming call. He could take a guess at who was calling, but Radu just closed his eyes and let his head rest against the back of the chair. He took the glasses off of the table and fingered them gently. He had stayed awake for over 24 hours and it was starting to take its toll on him. He had just dozed off when Dib woke up. He had to get some rest. His body felt weightless and it seemed as though he would sleep. Just a little would tie him over for a while.

Radu was jolted awake by someone or something taking Dib's glasses out of his hand. He looked around, confused but alert. Dib looked at him with his glasses held in both hands. He looked well rested and indeed better than when he had fallen asleep.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up," Dib said, looking down at his glasses.

"It's fine, I'll get plenty of time to sleep later. What's up?" Radu asked, rubbing his eyes irritably.

"Nothing. It's just that I feel so… empty? I guess that doesn't make sense… It's just that everything I once knew and everything I loved has been taken away, and I don't know how to feel," Dib said, wiping a smudge off one of the lenses, his voice quiet.

"Nothing has been taken away from you but your humanity. We can live on Earth, and I planned on staying here anyways," Radu shrugged, getting a worried feeling that Dib was going to cry.

"I don't like any of this! I never wanted to change! I never wanted to be bound to you! I just want my normal life back," Dib started crying and buried his face in his knees, hugging them to his chest.

"Dib, I know you didn't want this, but there was no other option. Either I left you alone and either die or end up on an examination table waiting for dissection. I wasn't going to leave you alone, and I couldn't if I wanted too. I feel a strong connection to you well beyond just knowing who you are," Radu tried to sooth him, but being Radu, he'd never done that before.

"You could have left me alone! I would have been fine!" Dib shouted at him.

"Oh yeah? You'd still be screaming in the middle of your change if I hadn't let my pod attach to you. Then your family, or maybe they wouldn't, would have brought you to the hospital where they would have seen what was going on, then sent you off to the FBI or something to be hacked apart by some knife happy lab coat!" Radu found himself caught up with Dib's emotions and had to take a deep breath to calm down.

"Why me? Why did you choose me?" Dib asked, drying his tears on the sheets.

"I didn't choose you, Dib, fate did. The moment I saw you, I knew you and I were bound for life," Radu said, rising from his seat and examining Dib's pod a moment.

"What are you doing?" Dib asked, looking back at him.

"I'm checking to see if you are okay internally," he replied pulling up Dib's stats.

"It can do that?" Dib asked amazed.

"An Irken's pod is a life support system, a medical kit, a rescue kit, a communicator, a jet pack, spider legs, and anything else you could need it for. In many cased, it's the difference between life or death for some Irkens," Radu explained, nodding at the stats, "You're looking okay. Blood pressure is good, your breathing is normal, pulse is good. I have no complaints."

"Wow. No wonder they're so important," Dib murmured looking at his.

"Your body is still too weak to do much, but I can help you learn to walk, if you're up to it," Radu said, looking at Dib.

"Better now than never," Dib replied swinging his legs over the side of the bed.

They were long and slender, yet at the same time they had a little bit of shape to them. His long legs disappeared into the slightly baggy shorts Radu had pulled on him. His skin was completely unblemished, unlike his own that bore many scars from countless sources. He placed one hand on Dib's elbow, and the other on Dib's back. He flinched a little but said nothing. Radu helped to hoist Dib to his feet, then gently took his hands off of Dib once he got steadied.

"Just try taking a few steps. Nothing too strenuous yet," Radu said, keeping his hands out to catch Dib if he fell.

Dib took a shaky step, firmly stood for a moment, then took another step. This one was far shakier than the first, and it took Dib longer to firmly shift his weight. Radu stayed close, getting a feeling Dib would need him any moment. Dib took another step, his legs shaking quite a bit. As he put his foot down, his leg gave out. Radu caught him faster than Dib could even register that he had start to fall.

"Your legs are not yet strong enough to fully walk. Until then, ask me or Tin for anything you might need," Radu said helping Dib into bed.

"How about something to entertain myself with then?" Dib asked looking hopeful.

"That's what I'm here for," Radu said sexually and winking at Dib.

"I-I meant a b-book or something!" Dib stammered, blushing madly as he tried to keep Radu away from him.

"Fine, fine. Any specific type of book?" Radu asked, bored already at the thought of going into a bookstore.

"Mystery," Dib replied happily.

"Okay. Tin, wait here with Dib and get him anything he needs," Radu said to the robot that stood in the corner.

Radu was back in about twenty minutes to find Tin giving Dib a glass of water. Radu quickly took the glass from Dib and gave him the bag with his books instead.

"Dib, did you forget that water burns us?" Radu asked, "Computer, a glass of Hish."

A robot arm came out of the wall and gave Radu a glass with a light green liquid in it. Radu took it and handed it to Dib.

"I-I did forget," he said, looking down that the cup.

"I know. Being Irken sucks. It's hard having to avoid something that you've grown up with. Hish is tasty. I'll come check on you in a little bit," Radu said, patting Dib's head before turning to leave.

"Wait. Where are you going?" Dib asked, alarmed.

"Down to my lab to work. I need to make sure that I have everything I need for a newly changed Irken," Radu said smiling back at Dib before leaving.

Radu was tired, but knew he had to double check everything before he even thought about sleep. Sleep. Dib was in his bed, but he'd never let Radu sleep in the same bed as him. He went to his lab, already running through what he needed to check on in his head. Now that Dib had changed, he felt a weight lift off of him. But now he had to teach Dib, and even then, Dib wouldn't want him as a life mate.

Maybe that's why he felt a little off at that moment. He had to figure out Dib. It's true that they had shared their blood, bonding them together for the rest of their lives. If Dib really didn't want him, he would take his own life to ensure Dib's happiness. Radu sunk down into his chair and sighed heavily. Dib would never want him. He would give his life for Dib, but would Dib ever do the same? He reached out, ready to run a diagnostic scan of the entire system and a full security sweep when the computer beeped once and Tin's image appeared before him.

"Yes, Tin?" Radu asked worried.

"Master, Dib is asking for you. He says that he has questions for you," Tin said.

"Can it wait? I rather busy," Radu asked, not sure if he should be happy or worried.

"It cannot," Tin said after a moment.

"I'll be right there!" Radu exclaimed, leaping from his chair.

He ran to a transporter that took him up to the second floor. He calmed himself and walked into the room. Dib was sitting up in bed looking sad. Tin stood by the bed trying to comfort him.

"Why are you sad?" Radu asked, confused.

"I'm not sad!" Dib said, trying to hide his sadness.

"You're sad. Why?" Radu asked, sensing Dib's sadness like waves coming off of him.

"I miss my Dad and Gaz," Dib said hugging his knees.

"Why in the world would you miss people who didn't care enough about you to take you to a hospital when you couldn't even move?" Radu asked, trying to hide his disgust at Dibs 'family'.

"They aren't perfect. No one is. But they were the only family I had," Dib said looking up at Radu with eyes that seemed teary.

"Being an Irken, I know nothing of 'family'. But if they are that important to you, maybe we can visit them later. When you've recovered more," Radu said looking for the right words.

"Yeah. Zim's parents are robots. Why don't Irkens have families?" Dib asked, genuinely curious.

"Well, Irkens are hatched from little cylindrical chambers. There are thousands all growing at one time, and when one is ready, the cylinder is broken, a pod attached and a little electrical shock to bring them to life. Then they are ready to start their training to become an invader or something," Radu said thinking back to his own hatching.

"Hatched? There are no mated pairs?" Dib asked confused.

"They are rare. Most Irkens don't have the sense of free will that set me, Zim, or Som-Ri apart from them. They are just mindless soldiers," Radu looked away, then sat next to Dib.

"You and I are rare?" Dib asked, blushing slightly.

"Yup. Zim and Som-Ri as well," Radu said, smiling to himself.

"You were an invader then?" Dib asked looking at him.

"Yes. The best there was, and probably the best there will have been for a long time," Radu lost his smile, thinking of the many planets he'd invaded.

"How many planets did you invade?" Dib asked.

"Too many for me to remember," he sighed, looking off into space.

"You must have seen some interesting life then?" Dib asked.

"To you, yes. Irkens see many different species often. They are not so strange to us," Radu replied.

"Will I ever see any of them?" Dib looked hopeful at that thought.

"Maybe. But you're living on Earth. You would never be able to survive in Irken society," Radu shook his head.

"What about you?" Dib asked, tilting his head.

"I will stay with you, if you don't mind," he replied.

"Why couldn't I survive?" Dib asked, feeling a little insulted.

"Well, they'd try to make you a soldier, but you lack the spirit that most, if not all, Irkens possess that enables them to kill," Radu said, folding his hands.

"You're probably right. But I don't think you'd be happy here," Dib said.

"Why not?" Radu asked, chuckling.

"You seem too wild to be content with just staying put," Dib replied.

"I would if I had you. You are all I need," Radu said placing a hand on Dib's.

"Can't we just be friends?" Dib exclaimed, blushing madly and pulling his hand away.

"Dib, that's not how it works," Radu sighed, looking away.

"And why wouldn't it?" Dib asked.

"Because my blood and your blood are now mixed. The only thing that keeps us as two separate things, is the fact that we haven't slept together yet," Radu said still not looking at him.

"But I'm not ready for anything like that! And I'm strait!" Dib exclaimed.

"I know. It's painful, and I don't like it, but I respect your choices. I'll give you all the time you need," Radu said standing.

"Time won't make me gay!" Dib couldn't think strait.

"No, I would think not. Not with you the way you are. But I can give you all the space you need," Radu said, standing and looking at him mournfully.

Before Dib could say anything, he left the room, closing the door softly behind him. Through the door, Radu could hear Dib calling him. Radu wanted Dib to think things over a little, even though he knew that his chances of ever getting love from Dib were slim. He heard something hit the floor, and almost rushed back into the room, before he heard Tin say something. Had Dib tried to fallow him? But with his legs still weak, he must have fallen over. Tin must be helping Dib back into bed. It was hard for Radu not to go in and help Dib, but he needed to give Dib space. They weren't officially bonded, and Dib already didn't like him very much.

Radu went downstairs, already trying to distract himself. He knew what he had to do. If he couldn't make Dib happy, he'd have to let him go. It was a thought Radu didn't like, but it was the only option he could think of that might make Dib happy. The only way to free Dib from their bond would be if Radu took his own life. It was a thought that pained him, but he knew it was the only way. Radu dropped onto the couch and rested his head against the backing. He was still tired, but his mind was too restless to let him sleep. He sat there, not knowing what to do. He wanted to give Dib a little bit of time before he came to any decision.

He looked down at his hand, one long scar running from his palm, all the way up the side of his hand, across his knuckles and stopping halfway down the other side. It was a scar he had gotten on one of the last planets he'd ever invaded. His native aide after he had established Irken rule had tried to kill him, but Radu had anticipated their attack enough to only get the scar on his hand. His body was covered in such scars, some far larger than the one on his hand. He ran a finger along the scar, feeling the soft, light green skin. It had taken a few weeks to fully use his hand again. He closed his fist and clenched it. He was in no way innocent.

His scars were reminders of how he was a survivor, a murderer. He had earned every scar. Every scar stood for one being he killed. He was not as innocent as Dib. He had even hurt Som-Ri, whom he'd loved his entire life. He had invaded countless planets on her visions. He rose through the ranks until he was the best invader there was. Yet when she chose another, he kidnapped her, beat her and raped her. He didn't deserve the happiness that he longed for. Expecting Dib to love him back was a gamble he was going to lose.


	7. Chapter 7

Section 7: Zim, Som-Ri and Shock

(A/N: All I own is this fanfiction, Som-Ri and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. Still working out the glitches, but I thank you all for alerting me.)

Dib had tried to call Radu back in, but he must not have heard him, so he tried to fallow after him, forgetting for a brief moment that his legs were still weak. He crumbled to the floor, his legs folding under him. Tin was at his side in a second, helping him up.

"Dib, you must rest. Your body is still adjusting," he said, helping Dib back into bed.

"I need to talk to Radu," Dib said looking at the door longingly.

"Master needs a little time to himself right now," Tin said standing by his bedside.

"Why did he bother bonding to me if he had a feeling I would never love him back?" Dib asked, looking to the robot for answers.

"Master has already explained that to you. He feels a connection to you that he has felt with no other. He is drawn to you on a spiritual level," Tin replied.

"But I'm nothing special. I was just a regular human. I'm still normal….ish," Dib said looking at himself.

"Master does not tell me why he does what he does. He just tells me what to do," Tin replied.

Dib watched as Tin walked to the door and left. Dib looked at the books Radu had bought him. They were all by his favorite authors and new releases. One of them was a book he'd already read, but it was his favorite. How had Radu known so much about his reading habits? He pulled out one of them and began to read it. He got a few chapters in when there was a knock on the door. Dib looked up.

"Yes?" he asked, confused.

"Hey. I just need a new shirt," Radu said opening the door.

The one he had on was covered in a black fluid and was trying to stick to Radu's slightly muscular build. Radu peeled it off and threw it into a hamper he had in the corner. He walked to an automated closet and pulled out a new t-shirt. Dib got a good look at a majority of the scars that seemed to litter Radu's body.

"Radu?" Dib asked, making Radu stop and look at him with his arms in the sleeves.

"Hm?" he asked, one hand pulling the neck open to pull over his head.

"How did you get so many scars?" Dib asked, looking at the one that went from his neck, down his chest and to his right side to right above his hip.

"Remember how I was the best Invader there was?" Radu asked, and Dib nodded, "Well, it came with a price. Not many aliens are happy to be invaded and enslaved. Some fought back."

"Wow. That's really cool," Dib smiled as he looked at many of the scars. It seemed that there was hardly any smooth skin left in places.

Radu pulled his shirt on and looked over at him. He noticed the book held open on his lap.

"Are you enjoying it?" Radu asked.

"Huh?" Dib asked confused.

"The book," Radu said indicating to it.

"Oh, yeah. How did you know I love their work?" Dib asked looking down at the book.

"When I was in your room, I noticed you had a lot of their works on your book shelves. It wasn't that hard to figure out what you liked," Radu shrugged.

"It was really cool of you to do that for me. Thanks," Dib said smiling at him.

"Glad you like it. It's good to know I did something right," Radu scratched his head a little before turning to leave.

"Hey, Radu?" Dib asked.

"Yup?" Radu replied, looking at him.

"This is your room isn't it," Dib said, just thinking about how he had gotten a shirt.

"Yeah," Radu replied indifferently.

"Where will you sleep since I'm in your bed?" he asked.

"Dunno. In here maybe," Radu looked at the chair beside the bed.

"But this is your bed," Dib said.

"I know. But you don't have a room here, and you probably won't. Maybe I'll just curl up next to you," Radu smiled a little at that.

"Don't you go trying anything," Dib flushed a little.

"Just being near you is enough to make me happy, Dib," Radu said, leaving to do whatever work had filled his time.

Dib thought about that. Radu had back off when Dib had outright refused to love him back. He'd been true to his word when he said he'd give Dib all the space he could need. He had even given up his bed for him. Radu wasn't all bad. He was caring if anything. But Dib wasn't sure if he could bring himself to turn gay.

Dib rolled over in his sleep, nestling closer to the pillow. There was something hard next to him. Dib opened his eyes and looked at what he had rolled into. Radu was curled away from him, sound asleep on the mattress. Dib blinked his eyes a moment, not yet grasping what he was seeing. Then he seemed to get it, and moved away a little. Radu didn't stir. His sides, rising gently as he slept. He must have climbed into bed after Dib had fallen asleep, and curled himself so then he wouldn't bother Dib. He was sleeping shirtless, for reasons Dib couldn't fathom.

He looked at some of the scars that covered his back. Three scars looked like claw marks running from his right shoulder down to the middle of his back and barely wider than a nickel. Then he noticed three scars a little under those that looked eerily about the same size and shape as the ends of the robot spider legs he'd seen come out of Zim's pod. Had Radu gotten in a fight with another Irken? Or had he just fought another alien who had a strange weapon? Dib reached out and placed his finger tips on the three little scars. Radu shifted causing Dib to withdraw his hand. Radu groaned curling into a tighter ball. Dib peered over Radu's shoulder at him. His face was scrunched up in pain and his breathing was erratic.

"N-no. Y-you ca-an't!" Radu murmured, still dreaming, "I-I didn't….no! Not me! I-it's not me!"

Dib watched him, not knowing what to do. Suddenly, Radu sat bolt upright, gasping for breath, clutching his chest. Dib made it look like he was still sleeping. Radu sat there for a moment, just trying to calm down. He pressed his hands over his eyes, pressing his palms hard onto his eyes. His breath hitched like he was about to break down in tears, but he just sighed angrily and rested his forehead against his knees.

"Radu? You okay?" Dib asked sleepily, rubbing an eye as he looked up at Radu sleepily.

"Yeah, Dib, I'm fine. Go back to sleep. Sorry I woke you," Radu said calmingly, pulling the sheets up over Dib's shoulder.

Radu climbed out of bed and went to the door. He paused a moment in the doorway, looking back at Dib, who had pretended to be sleeping, then slipped out into the hall. The second the door clicked closed, Dib sat up. Radu had had a bad dream about something. And it either scared him badly, or he was reliving something from his past. Dib lay back down, but couldn't get to sleep. The bed felt empty without Radu. But at the same time, Dib also tried to convince himself that it was better without Radu in the bed. Dib waited for an hour. Still Radu hadn't come back from wherever he had gone. Dib was just starting to get sleepy again, his eye lids getting heavy when Radu snuck back into the room. Dib fiend sleep. Radu sat down in the chair and watched Dib 'sleep'.

"Who am I kidding? How could anyone love a monster? Som-Ri didn't even want me," Radu dropped his head, whispering everything to avoid waking Dib.

Radu held his head. Dib wondered what he meant. Did he mean about what happened with Som-Ri? That could be forgiven and forgotten. But somehow, Dib felt there was something more to it. Tin entered the room, carrying something.

"Master," Tin said normally.

"Tin! SH! Dib's sleeping," Radu shushed him.

"Sorry, Master. Your medication is done," Tin said holding out what he was holding, talking in a whisper.

"Thank you, Tin. That will be all," Radu whispered back, "You know, Tin, eventually the nightmares will go away."

"Yes, Master," Tin whispered, slinking from the room.

Radu popped the pills into his mouth and swallowed them. He leaned his head against the back of the chair and sighed heavily. Dib waited a little longer, waiting to see if Radu would climb back into bed, but he never did. He fell asleep in the chair, and Dib finally surrendered to sleep.

Radu woke up to something touching his hand. He jolted awake, not even aware of where he was or what was going on. He stared up at Dib who stood before him, looking concerned.

"What? What's wrong?" Radu asked, looking around groggily.

"You okay? You must have fallen asleep in the chair," Dib said looking at him worried.

"I'm fine. Just- You're standing," Radu said looking Dib up and down.

"Yeah. I feel better today," Dib said smiling.

"Well, would you look at that! What a relief! I was a little worried. How do you feel? Any dizziness? Numbness? Tingling?" Radu was talking so fast, Dib almost couldn't understand him.

"I'm fine, really. I feel alright," Dib said taking a step back.

"It's important that during the first few days after your change that you pay close attention to your body. Your reactions will be a little delayed to pain or anything like that, so at the first singe of discomfort, you tell me," Radu said standing and going to get dressed.

Dib watched as Radu went to his closet, and pulled out one of his Invader coats and a pair of pants. Radu removed his pod and pulled on his coat and pants, then reattached it. He straightened out his coat and looked over at Dib, who was staring at him.

"What?" Radu asked, confused.

"Nothing. I just thought your coat was cool," Dib lied.

"Oh. Okay. I'm gonna go get you something to eat. Stay here," Radu ordered, pointing to the bed.

Dib nodded and watched as he left the room. Dib sat on the bed. Radu didn't look so good. In fact, he looked like the one who had gone through a species change. He was a trooper, trying to hide his own weakness from Dib, but it was also kind of obvious at the same time that there was something going on. Dib thought back to what Radu had said in his sleep. Did Radu get blamed for something he didn't do? Or did he get punished? Before Dib could think any further on the matter, Radu came in with a bowel in one hand. He carefully gave it to Dib and placed a spoon in his other hand. In the bowel was some kind of brown liquid and some kind of noodles or something Dib didn't want to think about.

"What is this?" Dib asked, not sure if Radu was serious or not.

"It's an Irken dish. It has a type of sprout that grows on Irk soaking in a broth of Irk spices and juices. Your body is Irken now, and as your first real meal, you need something your body can handle," Radu said patting his shoulder.

"Is it food?" Dib asked skeptically.

"Eat. It'll do you good," Radu chuckled, eating a spoonful himself to demonstrate.

Dib watched as Radu turned to leave. It seemed okay. Radu wasn't keeling over or choking to death. It just didn't look normal. Dib swallowed hard and put a spoonful in his mouth. It didn't taste like anything he'd ever tasted. It was wonderful and a little bitter all at the same time. Even the sprouts were better than he had thought. They were slightly crunchy, like they had been fried. Dib drained the whole bowel sooner than he would have liked, and it stayed down. He stood to take his bowel down when Tin came in and took the bowel and spoon from him.

"Master has instructed me to help you today. Allow me," Tin said walking away with the dishes.

Dib sat back down, thinking about Zim's and Som-Ri's robots. It seemed like Zeze and Tin were close personality wise, but when compared to Gir? Gir was a loose cannon compared to them. Gir was impulsive and rarely did what he was told correctly. It was nice that Tin and Zeze did as they were told, but they seemed sort of dull when compared to Gir. Dib sighed, reaching down next to the bed and grabbed one of the books he's been reading.

Radu was busy typing away on his computer when Tin came down. Radu didn't have to look behind him to know it was Tin. He just knew. He hit a few more keys in rapid succession.

"Dib finished his meal, Master. I do believe he is reading in the bedroom," Tin said.

"Thank you, Tin. Go keep him company for a while. I'm a little occupied," Radu said vaguely as he read the lines of data streaming across the screen.

Tin said nothing as he retreated from the room. Radu typed a few things onto the computer in front of him, then a few things on the one next to that one. A virtual display came up next to him displaying the hideout. Radu placed a finger over one area of the house and pressed. The area lit up and he dragged it to another part of the house. The main computer chirped and started at the task Radu had ordered. He pulled up another virtual display and started to construct a new room based off of what he had just moved on the other display. He even made a door that could only be opened by his voice signature.

He sat back in his chair and watched at his computers went to work. He hit one key on the computer and pulled up his communicator. He sent a message to Irk Central Command. It rang a moment. Then Tallests Purple and Red appeared before him.

"Radu, it's good to hear from you," Red said smiling.

"We were beginning to wonder about you," Purple chuckled.

"I have just been a little busy lately is all," Radu replied bowing his head at them a little.

"Are you trying to take over Earth or something?" Purple asked.

"No. I've decided that I no longer wish to be an invader. I have settled down on Earth," Radu said, his tone and face deadly serious.

"Radu, you can't be serious!" Red exclaimed.

"You're the best invader we have! What will we do without you?" Purpled panicked.

"Train more invaders. I've had enough of the life of an invader. I have more than enough scars thank you," Radu said stiffly.

"If this is really what you want," Purple said, sadly.

"Is there any way that we can convince you not to leave?" Red asked.

"No. I've made up my mind. It's better this way," Radu said smiling a little before ending the feed.

He felt better knowing that he had dealt with it. He had planned on staying on Earth the whole time, but he hadn't told anyone he was staying. Or that he was retiring. One of his computers started to beep, alerting him that there was someone at his front door. Radu sighed and rose from his chair. He took a transporter up to the living room and donned his human disguise. He answered the door. Zim and Som-Ri stood on his steps. Radu allowed them in smiling.

"It's good to see you both," Radu said closing the door behind them and dropping his disguise.

"We were a little worried," Zim said taking out his contacts and taking off his wig.

"You weren't answering our calls. We decided to come visit," Som-Ri said dropping her disguise.

"Sorry. The last few days have been really busy for me. Please, sit," Radu indicated to the couch, while he had a chair come out of the floor before it.

"How is Dib? Did his change go well?" Som-Ri asked sitting down.

"Yeah. We've been worried sick," Zim said, sitting beside her.

"He's alright. It was a day of hell, but he came out better than I had imagined," Radu sighed happily.

"Can we see him?" Som-Ri asked hopefully.

"You will see him right now," Radu looked back at the stairs.

Zim and Som-Ri looked over his shoulder as there were the sounds of footsteps from the upstairs hall. They saw Irken feet come down the steps.

"Radu? Is Zim and Som-Ri here?" Dib's voice came down.

"Dib, come show them your new look," Radu said standing and going to the bottom of the stairs.

Dib walked down the stairs and looked over at the two sitting on the couch. Their mouths fell open.

"Sit down please," Radu said, helping Dib over to his vacated chair.

"Dib?" Zim asked in shock.

"Yeah?" Dib asked looking at him tugging at the large open neck of his T-shirt, suddenly feeling self-conscious.

"It is you! You're so beautiful," Som-Ri breathed, placing her hands to her mouth.

Radu placed a hand under Dib's arm, hoisted him up, sat down in the chair and pulled Dib into his lap. He wrapped his arms around Dib and rested his chin on Dib's head. Dib squirmed and tried to get free, but Radu held firm.

"Mine," Radu grunted looking first at Som-Ri, then Zim.

"Radu, stop it! Let me go," Dib whined, trying to pry Radu's arms apart, a blush coloring his face.

"Dib, that's normal behavior with mated pairs," Som-Ri giggled.

"The male will assert himself and publicly lay claim to his mate in terms of physical touch or what Radu is doing now," Zim explained.

"I could have done a more drastic claim," Radu murmured hugging Dib to him.

Dib froze a moment while he thought this out. Then he understood and tried to squirm free again. This time, Radu let him go, and freely gave up the chair, pushing Dib into it to get him to relax a little.

"So, Dib still hasn't fully accepted you, huh?" Zim asked.

"Zim," Som-Ri cautioned.

"No," Radu tilted his head away from them.

"I have told him that I have no intention of turning gay," Dib said, not catching Radu's action.

"Dib, don't say such things!" Som-Ri cautioned Dib, looking at him in shock.

"Let it be, Som-Ri. He has a right to say how he feels on the matter. After all, he didn't ask for this. Not any of it," Radu said, trailing off a little at the end.

"But Radu-" Zim started.

"Zim, that's enough. This is a matter between me and Dib. You have your mate, and she accepts you. Let us be," Radu cut him off; trying his best to keep Zim from mentioning what he'll do if Dib doesn't accept him.

"Of course. We were asking too much of you in the first place," Som-Ri said, resting a hand on Zim's elbow to silence him, catching on to what Radu was doing.

Radu looked at her a moment, before nodding. His antennae twitched, picking up on a faint noise from Dib. Radu looked at him, but Dib wasn't showing any out word singe of discomfort. Radu grabbed Dib and pressed an antenna to his chest. Sure enough, he could hear the faint sound of Dib's organ starting to work overtime.

"Dib, you need to get some rest," Radu said pulling away from him and Dib started to protest.

"But I feel fine," Dib pouted.

"But you don't sound fine," Radu said pointing at Dib's chest.

"I feel fine," Dib said forcefully.

"Your nerves are still connecting so you won't feel anything right away. You'll feel the discomfort very soon now," Radu said hoisting Dib up in his arms and heading for the stairs.

"Will he be okay?" Zim called after them.

"Just fine," Radu called carrying Dib to bed.

He laid him down and had the computer run a vital scan of Dib, making sure everything was in order. Then he gave Dib something to drink.

"I need you to stay here. Get some rest please," Radu said looking at him fondly.

"I feel fine, Radu," Dib said sourly.

"Please, Dib. Just trust me on this. I need you to rest," Radu pleaded, looking tiredly at Dib.

Dib said nothing, but nodded briefly. Radu smiled at him and headed back downstairs. Zim and Som-Ri were waiting on the couch; looks of worry were painting their faces.

"Radu, why didn't you tell him?" Som-Ri cried.

"You could lose your life," Zim added as Radu dropped into the chair opposite them.

"Normally I would have told him. But I want him to act and react as he would normally, not because he feels that my life is in his hands," Radu sighed resting his head in his hands.

In the one brief moment, he seemed to age a few years. He looked up at them, and in his face, Som-Ri could see all the sleepless nights he'd suffered through, all the torturous hours he'd spent getting to where he is now, and she could also see all the years of loneliness that had caused him so much pain. Even though Radu had hurt her, he was still her friend for their years of growing up, and she couldn't let him suffer.

"Radu, be careful. Human life and human society are very different from Irken life and Irken society," Som-Ri looked at him, more as a friend who understood him, than just someone worried about him.

"I know. I'm also not expecting Dib to ever love me in return. But I can release him from me," Radu sighed, rubbing his temples.

"I don't know you as well as Som-Ri does, but that doesn't mean that I don't care. Just be careful," Zim said.


	8. Chapter 8

Section 8: Teaching

(A/N: I own this fanfiction, Som-Ri and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. Please enjoy)

It had to have been about three hours after Radu had brought Dib back upstairs before Radu came up himself. Zim and Som-Ri must have left at that point. Dib had tried to sleep, but he just couldn't settle down. Eventually, he gave up on sleeping, and pulled out the book he'd been reading. When Radu entered, he held in his hands a bowel. It was steaming and a spoon poked out of one side.

"You like that one?" Radu asked, bringing the bowel over to him.

"Yeah. The story is really good," Dib replied putting the book down and receiving the bowel from Radu.

"That's good. I was worried that you might not like that one. It wasn't one I would read anyways," Radu said smiling as he sat beside the bed.

Dib started in on the meal as Radu sat back to relax. Tin entered the room and gave Radu some kind of virtual display screen. Dib couldn't read anything on the screen because it was all in Irken. Radu dragged a finger from one side of the screen to the other and Dib watched in amazement as it appeared like the page flipped. Radu did it again and changed the page. This time a little image also came along with the words. Radu clicked on the image and pulled it up. From there, he seemed to edit how the image appeared by just using his fingers to click and drag certain parts in or out. When he was done, he clicked the finished product and gave the device back to Tin, who left the room.

"So how is your lunch?" Radu asked, looking at him.

"It's good. Are you just not hungry?" Dib asked, thinking for a moment that he hadn't once seen Radu eat.

"I ate a while ago. I'll be fine. I'm more worried about you," Radu replied smiling.

"You don't have to. I feel fine," Dib replied as he slurped down the last of his meal.

"Good. Feel up to some training?" Radu asked, standing and going over to the closet.

"Training? Sure," Dib replied standing and going over to him.

Radu pulled out some of Dib's old clothes. He handed the shirt and pants to Dib.

"You might want to change. Though I don't recommend you take your pod off just yet," Radu said handing Dib the clothes.

Dib pulled on the clothes, and pulled at his shirt when it didn't fit right from the bulge of his pod. Radu pulled up Dib's shirt to reveal his chest, detached his own pod and let it attach to Dib's chest.

"You can take yours off now," Radu said moving his hand deftly over Dib's back to his pod and placed Dib's hand over one of the spots, "Now press here."

With that, Radu pressed Dib's hand down and the spot clicked like a button. With a hiss, the pod came away in Dib's hand. He looked at it when he pulled it out from under his shirt.

"Now we can reattach it to your back," Radu said taking the pod from Dib's hands and placing it over Dib's back.

It attached itself to his back. Dib sighed a little as he felt it connect with him. Radu disconnected his pod from Dib and reattached it to himself. He pointed to one of the spots on his pod.

"When you detach your pod, you press this spot," Radu said showing Dib.

"And it's as easy as pressing a button?" Dib asked.

"Yup. Now to use the other functions of the pod, like the emergency medical aide, you just think about it. Think about what you need or even just say the words in your head and the pod will pick up the thought and react to what you need," Radu said.

"Just think the function? It's that sensitive?" Dib asked, amazed.

"Irken tech is highly sensitive to things like that. Not all of our tech is that great and a few still rely on manual controls," He explained, thinking for a moment.

"So if I want to use the spider legs, I just think about it?" Dib asked, thinking about Zim's spider legs.

"Yup. Give it a try. Just think about them, and they should appear," Radu said, giving Dib some room.

Dib thought about the spider legs, but nothing happened right away. He thought about them coming out of his pod and working like Zim's had. Then he could feel something stirring. He could feel something in his pod changing and clicking into place. Then the legs appeared out of his pod, forming around him. He looked at Radu, who stood beaming at him through the spider legs.

"What do I do now?" Dib asked as he laughed.

"Try telling them a command," Radu suggested.

Dib decided he'd try to stand on them. He knew they were strong enough to hold something, because Zim had walked with them. No sooner had Dib thought about walking on them, had the legs already started to hoist him up into the air. He wobbled a little as he tried to get his balance. He moved his legs sporadically as he tried to steady himself.

"Plant the tips under you to act like a support system," Radu explained, moving below Dib.

Dib spaced the tips of his spider legs out under him and gained a little more stability. He looked down at Radu, who was watching the legs bend and move. Dib took a few steps, using a few legs at a time to help balance as he shifted his weight. Radu watched carefully as Dib walked around the room, shifting the legs as he tried to move stealthily. His movements were clumsy at best, but everything was in working order.

"Dib, come down now. I think that's enough for now," Radu said, tapping a finger against one of the legs.

Dib looked down at him and nodded. He thought about the legs retracting and they did. Radu placed a hand on Dib shoulder, thinking for a moment that he would love to kiss Dib, but also knowing that Dib would never let him, and let his hand slide down to Dib's bicep.

"You did a good job for your first try," Radu forced a smile, and even he could feel that the smile didn't reach his eyes.

"Really? I'm sure you were much better your first time," Dib said tilting his head.

"This may be true, but you also have to remember that we are trained since the day we are hatched," Radu replied looking back at Tin as he entered the room.

"Master, it is ready," Tin said.

"Thank you, Tin. Dib, come with me, I have something for you," Radu said opening a transport to take them down to his lab.

Dib fallowed him into the transport and over to a computer that had a large capsule off of it. Radu hit a key on the key board, and the capsule opened to expose a robot that was similar to Tin, except for their colorations. Dib looked at Radu.

"Most common Irken soldiers don't have a robot servant. But I won't always be around to help you," Radu looked at the robot, dropping his voice.

"What's their name?" Dib asked, looking at the little robot.

"His name is anything you want it to be. The greatest gift a Master can give their servant is a name," Radu said, watching Dib approach the robot.

The lights clicked on and it looked around before locking onto Dib.

"Your name will be…Leo," Dib said definitively.

"Leo?" Radu asked, cocking his head.

"Yes, Master," The little robot saluted to Dib.

"Leo is short for Leonardo, one of the greatest minds of history," Dib said looking at Radu, then back at the robot, "What can he do?"

"Anything you need him to. He's liked Tin in the sense that he'll obey you and fight for you. He's also linked to your pod, so you can call him from anywhere," Radu explained, watching Dib look the little robot over.

"He's great, Radu. Thank you," Dib said smiling up at him.

Radu smiled back. But as Dib spoke to his new robot, Radu knew the main reasons behind the robot were darker than just wanting Dib to be a little more of a part of their Irken society. Radu's mind was almost made up. Leo would ensure that Dib was taken care of, no matter what Radu decided.


	9. Chapter 9

Section 9: Dib Notices

(A/N: I own this fanfiction, Som-Ri and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. Enjoy.)

Radu woke up before Dib did the next day. He looked at Dib, sleeping peacefully on his side facing Radu, hand pressed over his mouth, breathing gently. Radu sighed softly, enjoying the knowledge that Dib at least let Radu share the bed with him. Radu dressed and went downstairs to the kitchen. He had loaded all of the Irken recipes into Leo as he could so then Dib would be able to eat without much incident. He made himself something and something for Dib, then washed the dishes, and waited.

One of his computers started to beep, alerting him to a call. He called a computer to him and watched as the face that came up before him was like that of a cracked mask. It was cracked over the left side to reveal a round yellow eye set back into pale skin. The creepy frozen smile on the mask seemed to contradict the urgency in the yellow eye.

"Patches, you looked worried," Radu had to hold back a smile as he looked at his old friend.

"Radu, I wish I were calling you under better circumstances. I have heard that your old friends from Grithoc are looking for you," the creature said looking at him.

"Those little worms? They'll never find me way out here," Radu scoffed, trying to hold back a laugh.

"You know they're born hunters. I don't know why you decided to stay on that backwater planet, but maybe they won't find you," Patches tried to make himself happier, "Just don't leave the planet or send any long distance messages."

"I don't send too many of those these days. And I have no reason to leave this planet. Not when I have Dib," Radu smiled to himself and chuckled.

"Dib? Whose Dib? A local?" Patches eye lit up and he leaned in closer.

"He was a local. Something happened to him and he's an Irken now," Radu smiled at Patches.

"He? Wow. Som-Ri rejecting you really put you through the ringer didn't it?" Patches blinked at him a moment.

"I had no choice in the matter. We were drawn to each other," Radu replied, "Thank you for warning me. Take care of yourself, Patches."

"Right. You too, Radu," Patches waved before hanging up.

Radu stood and headed upstairs with Dib's breakfast. Dib was just starting to wake up when Radu entered the room. Dib was rubbing his eyes sleepily and sitting up when Radu opened the door.

"Good morning sleepyhead," Radu said smiling at him.

"Whattimesit?" Dib asked groggily.

"About 9 in the morning. Here's breakfast," Radu said placing the bowel in Dib's lap.

Dib nodded sleepily and started eating. Radu reached into the closet and pulled out some of Dib's old clothes.

"Leo, I'll need you to create some new clothes for Dib. Something based off of these," Radu said, placing them into Leo's little hands.

"Yes sir," Leo said leaving the room.

"Were those all my clothes?" Dib asked looking after Leo.

"I only brought a few pairs of clothes for you. I was planning on making you some new ones anyways," Radu shrugged.

"Can you sow?" Dib asked, finishing his food.

"Yeah. I learned a long time ago. Now I need to go down to the lab to make sure that the designs are okay. Leo knows your style but I want to make sure he gets it right," Radu said heading down into the lab.

Leo was transferring a few images over from screen to screen. Radu looked over his little shoulder. Radu liked the style that Leo had chosen. It combined the best elements of the coat and the face t-shirt that Dib wore. Now Radu would have to find the right cloth and start working on it so then Dib was dressed more like an Irken.

"Leo, go upstairs and tell Dib that he can wear something of mine until I finish his new clothes," Radu said dismissing the little robot, "Tin, I need you to locate some fabric that is breathable yet durable."

"Yes, Master," Tin said linking up to one of the computers.

Radu watched as numerous hits came up on the screen of possible fabrics. Radu read the list and as he went, he highlighted specific fabrics. The ones he didn't highlight, he deleted from the list. From the ones he did highlight, he began to narrow them down. They were weaves and compositions that Dib had never heard of, but Radu knew they would be far better than anything they would make on Earth.

Once Radu had decided on the fabrics he would use, he placed an order and pulled Tin's connector out of the computer. He hit a few keys on one of his computers and pulled up all of his old sewing equipment. He hadn't used it in a while and it needed to be dusted before he even thought about placing any fabric near it. He pulled up a portable data pad and headed upstairs.

He wanted to check on Dib and see how he was doing with his clothes. It had taken Radu almost an hour to get all of his tasks done, but it was worth it to make Dib happy. He walked upstairs and paused in the doorway. Dib was reading propped up against the pillows. He had pulled on one of Radu's outfits, and it looked a little big on him. Radu smiled to himself. Dib was his happiness, but there was no way he could change Dib's choice to love him.

(A/N: For some reason, this chapter is being difficult. This is a new event. It just isn't doing what I'm telling it.) Dib rolled over in his sleep, only to wake up when he felt a cold empty spot in the bed beside him. He just caught sight of Radu slipping out of the room. Had he been in the room the whole time and just decided to attend to something? Or had Radu had another nightmare and hadn't been able to fall asleep again? Dib rose from the bed and snuck out after Radu. Radu headed down to the lab and Dib after him. Dib hid himself near one of the computer consoles.

Radu sat down at something that looked kind of like a sowing machine. He pulled out some cloth that looked to be about the same color of his old jacket. With deft fingers, Radu cut the fabric and sowed it back together again. Dib watched in amazement as Radu made clothing out of the fabric. Dib knew so little about him, but he didn't seem like the kind of person who would have the patience to sew. Yet he sat there, bent over the machines stitching each piece together with skill and care. After a few more minutes, Dib's eyes were getting itchy from tiredness, and he decided to head back up to bed.

He crawled into bed and pulled the sheets up over himself. Yet his mind wouldn't turn off. He kept thinking about Radu. He had showed more concern for him than he could remember anyone ever giving him. His own family hadn't care this much about him. Yet Radu, who had only known him a short time, had helped him through the most painful thing he had ever experienced and even took the time to teach him about his new abilities. Radu cooked him foods that his new system could handle, and was even taking the time to make him new clothes. He had even made Dib his own robot servant. Radu said he loved him, but somehow, Dib also couldn't be sure if he meant it.

After a while, Radu crept back into the room. He carefully sat on the bed, being careful so then he wouldn't wake up Dib. Dib kept his eyes closed. He felt Radu place a hand on his shoulder very gently. He could feel Radu leaning over toward him, and could even feel Radu's breath. He was sure Radu was going to kiss him, but Radu hesitated and leaned away from him. He gently patted Dib's shoulder before lying back down to sleep.

(A/N: New event... again. This section is just being difficult.)

"Dib? I have something for you," Radu said entering the bedroom.

"Yeah?" Dib asked looking up from his book.

Radu held out the clothes that he had made for him. Dib took the clothing and looked it all over. It was like Radu's clothing and his old clothing mixed together.

"Try it on," Radu said leaving the room to let him change.

Dib almost couldn't believe that Radu had actually left the room. Dib got out of Radu's clothes and pulled on the new ones. They fit just right and looked far better than he thought they'd be. He looked over at the door.

"I'm done," Dib called, feeling a little foolish in the process.

Radu poked his head in and drew a breath. He looked Dib up and down and a smile crept across his face. He crossed his arms and looked smug.

"I'm so glad they fit. I wasn't entirely sure they'd fit you," Radu said smiling at him.

"You made these?" Dib asked pulling at the collar of the jacket.

"Yes. It wasn't as challenging as you might think. Here, I'll straighten your collar," Radu replied, reaching out and fixing Dib's collar.

Dib watched as Radu's hands gently turned up his collar and straightened it out. The very same hands that had nursed him back to health and stitched the clothes he wore. Yet they were the same hands that had conquered hundreds of other planets. How could anyone have gentle, yet destructive hands?

Radu tugged at the jacket in a few places and straightened out a few of the wrinkles that had formed. He looked it over and the way it fit on Dib. It was a good cut and it gave Dib the flare in the back that he liked from his old coat. He smiled to himself as he straightened up and looked at Dib.

"What?" Radu asked, noticing for the first time that Dib was staring at him.

"Nothing. It just doesn't seem like you to do stuff like this," Dib said nervously.

"I know. And even those that know me well still don't believe that I can sow. But even the most violent Irkens can still have a tender touch," Radu smiled more to himself.

"Does Som-Ri know you can sow?" Dib asked.

"Yes. She's known since I first started sowing," Radu got a faraway look to his eyes.

"Then, tell me more about that time. About the time before you decided to come to Earth," Dib said sitting on the bed, smiling at the chance to get to know him better, and how he seemed to want to share.

"There's a lot to tell. It would take many hours, if not days, of telling before you've heard it all," Radu thought about it a moment.

"It's okay if you don't want to tell me. Everyone has their pasts," Dib shrugged.

"It's not that Dib. I've lived for a long time. I've been to more planets than I can remember on my own. It's going to take a while to tell it all," Radu sighed as he tried to remember even half of the planets he'd been too.

"Then tell me about the first planet," Dib looked at him.

"All right. It was not long after I graduated from the academy. Tin was by my side as we set of to the distant planet of Hett-thic. It was forested, but it was far less forested than some of the other planets I invaded years after," Radu settled himself into the chair by the bed, "The inhabitants were kind of like birds crossed with people. They made their homes anywhere they could, like trees, mountains, and sometimes even out of the ground. It took me quite a while, I think about three weeks of observation, before I was ready to touch down on the planet's surface."

Dib watched him as he spoke. Radu looked like he was recalling something he had heard countless times as a child. He crossed his legs and sat eager for more.

"After dawning my disguise, I spent the next four months infiltrating the leading tribes of the planet and taking control, usually by causing small wars between the leading Hett-thicen tribes. Gradually I gained control and after a while I even showed myself, introducing Irken rule gradually. But there were some issues right before the main Armada showed up to fully take over. A group of Hett-thicens showed up and tried to kill me. But when they stabbed me, they went too shallow on the up cut and just missed my vital organ. Gave me this," Radu unbuckled his jacket and showed Dib the longest scar on his body.

Dib couldn't help but stare at it. It went from the middle of his neck, down a little to the right to about the middle of his chest, then turned dramatically right down to the side of his right hip. There were other scars around that one, ones that were smaller, wider, lighter, darker, and nastier looking. But they weren't nearly as long as this one was.

"It was shallow enough that I didn't bleed to death or have organ failure, but I had to endure a month and a half of physical therapy and extensive medical aide," Radu said running a finger along part of the scar.

"And yet you went back to invading. Were you scared to go back?" Dib asked looking up from the scar.

"A little. But I had to do as the Tallests told me. It's alright though. No matter how badly I was hurt, I knew I would be back on my feet again. Very little could hurt me after a while," Radu replied.

"You mean, you stopped getting hurt?" Dib asked skeptically.

"No, I stopped feeling it," Radu smiled, "Because of all the scars, a lot of the nerves were also damaged beyond repair. I just can't feel a whole lot."

Dib stood and ran a finger along the scar. It was soft and reminded Dib of baby's skin. Radu's breath hitched a moment as Dib ran his finger along it. Dib withdrew his hand and looked at Radu.

"It must have hurt badly," He said, looking down again at the scar.

"Like the change, only a little less intense," Radu said, his voice a little quiet as he looked in Dib's eyes.

It was almost as if Dib were connecting to him on a level that he had only ever dreamed off. But in the same instant that Radu thought he saw any small singe of love, it faded fast as Dib quickly diverted his gaze and moved over to the bedside to retrieve a book.

"Thanks again for the clothes. And the story. I realized the other day, I knew almost nothing about you. Thank you," Dib said looking back at him and smiling.

"No problem. If you need me, I'll be in the lab updating Leo and Tin," Radu rose from the chair and buckled his jacket.


	10. Chapter 10

Section 10: Nothing to Lose:

(A/N: All I own is this fanfiction, Som-Ri and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. I have gotten the glitch taken care of. Enjoy!)

Radu went down to the lab and called the two robots down for their maintenance. He hooked the two robots up and started their update downloads. Radu dropped into a chair and told the computers to store his sowing equipment. He leaned back and sighed.

Had Dib finally started to feel for him? Or was it just Dib's curiosity that got the better of him and made him a little more touchy feely than before? Radu was running out of time to give him. He had taught Dib how to use his pod, gotten him a robot slave, and made him more traditional Irken clothes, there was little more for him to do.

Radu stayed down in the lab for a few more hours, checking and changing a few things as the updates were uploaded into the two robots. Then he decided to head upstairs and get Dib something to eat. He entered the transport and headed back up.

No sooner had the transport stopped and opened, than an earthshaking explosion rocked the house. Radu stumbled and almost fell into one of the counters as he tried to steady himself. Smoke spilled into the room from the living room and stung at his eyes.

Radu forced his way into the living room through the smoke, coughing as he breathed in the smoke. Through the smoke, he could see daylight pouring in through a big hole in the front of his house. Chunks of metal and stone were lying all over the floor and on the furniture.

Before he could even get a clear image of what was going on or who was attacking him, something hard cracked into his skull. He hit the floor dazed and his head pounding. As he was trying to control the pain and get himself back up, something slammed into his abdomen and knocked the wind out of him, doubling him over. He coughed and sputtered, holding his aching body, trying to look up at his attacker.

"Look at him. He's still trying to get up," it was a guttural language of alien that Radu had heard before, but with his head pounding and his abdomen aching, he couldn't think of the name.

Radu squinted through the smoke, and tried to see their face. His eyes were watering and stinging from the smoke and he still couldn't quite breathe. He tried to pull himself up by grabbing hold of the beings leg, but they threw him off into one of the counters. Radu let out a groan as he tried to pull himself up. His back sent shockwaves of pain shooting up his spine as he tried to pull himself up. He crumpled to the floor, gasping and reeling from the pain.

"Don't hurt him too much. We still need him to come after this one," this voice was deeper than the first, sounding a little older as well.

"Radu? Radu where are you?" Dib's voice cut through Radu's pain like a knife.

He raised his head and looked through the smoke. He couldn't really see too far, but he could see the dark shape of one of the intruders carrying something that was struggling. Radu gritted his teeth and hauled himself up.

"Radu!" Dib screamed.

"Let go of Dib!" Radu roared running into the smoke at the dark shape.

The one that had hit Radu when he first came upstairs grabbed him and threw him toward the couch. He was thrown with such force he crashed right through it. He could hear Dib scream for him again, but something cut it off.

"This should shut 'im up. Let's go," said the second one, the dark shape moved and headed for the hole in the wall.

"See you soon, Radu," laughed the first shape as it too headed for the hole.

Radu lay in the splinters of his couch, breathing hard and trying not to move. He could hear the engines from their ship fire up, then fade away. Gradually, the smoke began to clear. Radu closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and sat up. He cried out as pain shot up and down his back. From outside, he could hear another ship approaching. He sat still a moment as he tried to ride out the pain.

"Oh Tallest," it sounded like Zim.

He heard two pairs of feet go sprinting across the ground toward his home. That was the good thing about his home. He had set up base in a typical neighborhood, but had put a barrier around it so then it always looked the same. Even with a big gaping hole in the front, his neighbors would see the same old house.

Som-Ri stopped right at the edge of the hole and took everything in quickly. She saw Radu and was at his side in an instant. Zim paused in the new entryway.

"Radu what happened?" Zim said looking everything over.

"Come on. Let's get you up," Som-Ri tried to help him up, but lowered him down again when he cried out in pain.

"What's wrong? What hurts?" Zim was by her side in a second, trying to help Radu lay back down.

"No. I need to get up. Those pethics took Dib," Radu barked as he tried to stand.

"What if you broke something?" Som-Ri asked.

"They took DIB!" Radu roared it as he hurled himself up onto his feet, grunting from the pain.

Som-Ri and Zim were by his sides, helping to hold him up as he tried to make his way back to the transport. He was unsteady on his feet and couldn't seem to keep himself in the right course to the transport.

"Som-Ri, you saw this happen didn't you," Radu gasped as he pressed a button for the doors to open on the transport.

"Yeah. But it wasn't soon enough. I'm sorry," Som-Ri dropped her voice a little.

"Don't apologize. You can't control those blasted things," Radu cursed as he hauled himself into the transport, dragging Zim and Som-Ri along with him.

"Radu, how will you rescue Dib if you can't even move on your own?" Zim asked, trying to help keep Radu on his feet.

"I'll be fine," Radu kept his eyes ahead, not looking at either of them.

"Do you know who they were?" Som-Ri asked, keeping her voice level.

"I heard them talk. One of them grabbed me. I know I've heard their language before…" Radu closed his eyes, thinking back to all the planets he'd been to, all the planetary meetings, and even all the interstellar calls he'd heard and made.

The transport brought them down into the lab and the doors opened. Radu shrugged out of their helpful hands and staggered his way over to where Tin and Leo were getting updated.

"That's why we didn't see them upstairs," Zim said, going to unhook them.

"Don't touch them. They aren't done yet. If you do, they'll crash," Radu grabbed Zim's hand in time to stop him.

"Who were the intruders, Radu?" Som-Ri asked, putting herself between him and the computer.

"Let me think a minute okay? I'm in pain and it's making it hard to think," Radu tried to keep his voice calm and level.

"I'll try to access the computer security systems and see if I can get an image," Zim started on the computer, typing away.

Radu remained quiet, thinking. He knew the language, but with all the planets he'd been too, it was impossible to remember which one. Then Patches call seemed to bubble up from his memories. Grithoc. They'd found him. He opened his eyes only to see that Zim had found the security cameras.

He saw the explosion, but the intruders were hidden by the smoke. They could hear Radu get hit by one of them while the other slunk off upstairs. Then they heard and partially saw Radu get thrown into the counter. Zim flinched and Som-Ri placed a hand on Radu's shoulder. There was no way that he'd have been able to fight back. He was outmaneuvered. Then they heard Dib screaming for Radu. Then, as the smoke began to clear a little, they saw Radu pull himself up and charge the one carrying Dib, yelling for them to let Dib go. They only saw the other shape intercept him, and throw him into the couch, they weren't able to see who it was. Dib kept screaming for Radu only to be gagged and dragged away by the two figures.

It was just as painful to watch as it was when it happened. Radu cut the clip and pulled up his contacts list. He typed in 'Patches' and sent out the call. Som-Ri moved next to Zim .

"Don't say anything," she said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Why?" he asked as Patches' image came up on the screen.

"Radu. I got the feeling I'd be hearing from you again soon. What happened to you? Som-Ri? Who's that with you? What's going on?" Patches took in all the sights quickly but asked all the questions that came into his head.

"Those Grithociens that were looking for me took Dib," Radu grunted as he tried to stand up straighter.

"They found you? How did they find you?" Patched exclaimed.

"I had placed an order yesterday for fabric to make Dib some Irken clothes. It's possible that they could have gotten my name from the order codes," Radu said after a moment's thought.

"How could you have been that careless?" Som-Ri asked looking at him.

It was not like Radu to make a mistake like that. He knew that there were aliens looking for him, he even had to look after Dib, and yet he still made a mistake that could cost him his life or Dib's. Radu shut his eyes tightly before he looked up at them.

"For a moment, I forgot about the Grithociens. Because of me, Dib is in danger. It's my fault, and I will get him back. But I don't have the strength to do it all myself right now," Radu hung his head as he leaned on the computer frame.

"Wow. I've never seen you like this," Patches leaned in a little.

"Radu. You aren't alone in this. You've always had all of us on your side," Som-Ri smiled at him.

Zim, doing as he was told, smiled and nodded.

"What do I need to do?" Patches asked.

"I need to make sure they don't get away. I can find Dib. But if you two could fly the ship up there, and you, Patches, could stop them if they try to get away. This will let me heal a little before I try to fight them," Radu said looking at Som-Ri and Zim, then at Patches.

"I'll meet out just outside of the Earth's gravitational field," Patches said before hanging up.

"Let's go get Dib," Zim said as Radu readied the ship.

(A/N: New scene.) Dib looked out of his glass prison at his kidnappers. They were taller than Radu, and he was taller than Dib. They were covered in thick hair that was tannish. The hair on one seemed to be darker than the other. They both had large brown eyes and horns that came out of the sides of their heads.

He didn't even know if Radu was okay. He'd only gotten a brief glimpse of him getting thrown into the couch before they dragged him away. From what he saw, Radu looked like he was already hurting. He'd heard something crash in the kitchen not long after the explosion, but he wasn't even sure if it was Radu or not.

He found himself getting a little scared. He didn't know why these aliens wanted him, or what had happened to Radu, or what would happen to him. He didn't know how to fight in his new body yet, and he didn't have enough skill with his spider legs to be able to fight two big aliens like these two. One of the aliens looked at him.

"I can see why Radu settled down with her. She sure is a pretty little Irken, eh?" the lighter one said to the other.

"Fair skin, beautiful eyes, unique antennae, and a slight frame. But she doesn't really have any boobs though," the darker one said, shifting his blaster rifle in his hands.

"Well, maybe Irken girls don't get big boobs. I don't think they even have kids," said the other.

They both looked at Dib. He couldn't help but think that it was a little weird that they thought he was a girl. Did he really look like a female Irken? He didn't think he looked anything like Tak, and she left a long time ago. He wasn't even sure how he could understand their strange language.

Dib sat there and looked around the room. It was a large room, almost like an airplane hangar, only a little smaller. His own prison was just a hovering glass jar. He missed Radu. He didn't love him, but he'd come to like the big alien. Radu had always taken care of him, and took extra care to help him. Even when he was obviously in pain, he still charged at two foes he couldn't see to save him.

He slumped against one of the walls of the glass jar he was in and hung his head. If only he was stronger. Then he'd be able to fight his way out of here. But his body still hadn't fully recovered, and Radu had tried his best to let Dib rest up and get back up on his feet gradually.

"How long do you think it will take for Radu to find us?" asked the lighter one.

"Well, if you didn't hurt him too badly, Grezz, then he should come soon," said the darker one to the lighter one.

"This is Radu we're talking about. He can live through anything," the one called Grezz said.

"I don't know. You did throw him into a counter. Do you forget that Irken's always build with metal?" the darker one asked.

"That is true. But I thought that Irken's spines could bend backwards," Grezz said leaning against one of the walls.

"Only if they are relaxed enough or bend them themselves," the darker one scolded.

"He'll be fine," Grezz waved his companion off.

The door at the far end of the room slid open. Silhouetted in the doorframe stood Radu. Dib leaned close to the glass. He was never so happy to see an alien in all his life. The two aliens straightened up and stood directly between Dib and Radu. Radu walked into the room and stopped halfway to them. His eyes were cold and hard. It chilled Dib to see him this way.

"See? Told you he would be fine," Grezz said, nudging his companion.

"I've come for Dib," Radu commanded, not looking at Dib, but focusing on the two before him.

"About that. You can have her, only if you win against us," the dark one said.

"We took your little sweetheart to lure you hear, to fight us, so we could get revenge for what you did to our people," Grezz said pointing his gun at Radu.

"I'm not in the mood to deal with you two younglings right now. You have your whole lives ahead of you, yet you make a stupid choice like this?" Radu tilted his head a little, looking at the shortness of his opponents horns.

"We have to do this in order to show you Irkens that we won't just sit around and be your pets," Grezz said, spitting on the ground.

"Lezt, maybe we should move this one. Can't have her getting hurt in the cross fire. When we kill Radu, she'll make a lovely pet," Grezz said to his darker companion.

"No. She's fine," Lezt replied.

Radu only sighed heavily and cracked his shoulder. Grezz fired at Radu, only to have Radu lazily turn to the side. Between Grezz and Lezt, they couldn't land a single hit on Radu. He dodged with all the flexibility that Dib had seen from Zim. Radu dodged one of the blasts, bounded off of the wall and headed straight for Lezt. Just before Lezt had the chance to shoot Radu, Radu kicked the gun from Lezt's hands and leapt over his shoulder, skidding to a halt just near Dib. Grezz tried to hit him, but Radu crouched low and sprang into Dib's prison, moving it out of the way of the blast.

Dib was rocked to the side from the force of Radu's jump. He just managed to get himself up when he saw Radu throw a small Irken knife into the barrel of Grezz's gun, causing it to explode in his hands, burning his hands and lighting some of the hair on fire. While he tried to put out the fire, Radu pulled an Irken short sword out of a hip sheath. He rolled across the ground and got inside of Lezt's down slice with his knife and brought his own blade up into Lezt's forearm, causing him to drop his blade in a howl of pain.

Dib stifled a gasp as he saw the rich blood pore out of Lezt's forearm. He couldn't believe that this was the same Radu who had so tenderly picked him up in his weakened state and carried him like a child. No, this Radu was bloodthirsty and ruthless.

Grezz tried to grab Radu, but Radu used his foot to hook it behind Grezz's head and pull him down to the ground. While Grezz held his head from the impact, Lezt grabbed Radu and tossed him hard into the wall. Radu slid to the ground, crying out in agony as he felt something in his back pop. From across the room, he could hear Dib scream for him. He looked up at Lezt, who stood over him holding his short sword, his arm bleeding slightly. He went to roll away from the swing, but with his back aching again, he felt the blade sink deep into his side. He grunted as he brought his legs up into Lezt's crotch. As he hit the ground moaning, Radu pulled himself up, holding the hilt of his sword as he watched the blood trickle down his side.

He grabbed one of his knives he'd hidden in his boots and drove it right down into the back of Lezt's neck. Grezz let out a howl of rage and charged Radu. He grabbed at the sword in Radu's side, and almost grabbed it, before Radu was able to grab his wrist and twist it around. Grezz hit the floor in a minute, screaming in pain as Radu twisted with all his might. With his other hand, he grabbed another knife and drove it into Grezz's neck. He pulled it out and let the body hit the floor. He stood a moment, catching his breath and watching the blood pool on the floor.

He staggered his way over to Dib, keeping his head down as he looked for a way to open it without breaking the glass and potentially hurting Dib. He hit a button on the hover control panel. The hovering jar lowered to the floor and opened. Dib tumbled out and looked up at Radu as he caught him. Radu smiled tenderly down at him.

"I'm sorry you had to see that. I'm so glad you're okay," Radu said hugging Dib closely to him.

Dib tried to push away from Radu, and had to try several times before he let go, and looked down at the sword still in Radu's side.

"We have to get this looked at! Pull it out or something!" Dib panicked, not knowing if he should pull it out or try to fix it himself.

"Dib, go get Som-Ri and Zim. They're outside," Radu pushed Dib toward the door and sunk down onto his knees.

Dib ran to the still open door and blinked a few times to adjust to the light. He could see Som-Ri and Zim standing by an Irken ship. As soon as they saw him, Zim shrugged off of the ship, his brow furrowing. They ran to him.

"Radu needs help," Dib breathed, feeling the panic in him rising.

They ran inside and were immediately around Radu. Dib placed his hand on Radu's arms.

"It'll be okay. You're going to be okay," Dib said.

Radu smiled up at him weakly as Zim and Som-Ri set to work. Dib moved away from them a little, to give them room to work. He looked at the bodies that lay on the floor. Radu had cut them down almost quicker than he could see. Had Radu killed others like these two before?

"Dib? I'm sorry. I couldn't protect you from my past," Radu said weakly, grunting as Zim pulled out the sword.

Som-Ri used a light laser to cauterize the wound a little to help stop the bleeding. Then she started to apply some medicine that made Radu gasp with pain as she moved her hands carefully around the wound.

"This should help you recover a little better. Zim, call in Patches. He can lift Radu without hurting him," Som-Ri said wrapping some bandages around the wound.

As Zim ran outside to get Patches, Dib sat beside Som-Ri. Radu had rested his head against the hover container and looked to be sleeping. He looked so fragile. It was hard to believe that he had just cut down two huge aliens a second earlier.

"Has he killed many aliens?" Dib asked looking at her tentatively.

"He hasn't told you about his past?" Som-Ri looked at him carefully.

"He told me about his first planet. He showed me his scar. But has he killed before?" Dib asked again.

"Yes," she replied after a moment.

"Why didn't he tell me that?" Dib asked almost a little hurt.

"It's not my story to tell, but all I can say is that Radu settled down on Earth to leave his old life behind. He was tired of killing, invading and always being hunted. He thought that living on Earth, that living with you, would give him a clean start," Som-Ri said, gently rubbing Dib's arm.

"I just don't know what to think now. Why would he hide that from me?" Dib looked at her with teary eyes.

Som-Ri pulled him close and hugged him tightly.

"He didn't know how you would react to it, and he felt that the less you knew, the better it would be for him to start knew," she whispered to him softly, trying to calm him.

"I would have understood! It was like it was here wasn't it?" Dib asked, holding her out at arm's length and looked her dead in the eye.

"It was in the sense that he was fighting for his life. But all the times he killed his attackers, he was very unstable for a few days after. It really messes with him," she replied.

"I would have understood," Dib murmured looking at Radu.

Patches walked into the room, his boots making no noise as he walked over toward them. Zim trotted just behind him. Patches knelt down beside them and looked Radu over. Then Dib.

"Hello. I'm Patches. A friend of your lover's. Don't worry little one. I'll take good care of him," Patches winked at him with his one yellow eye.

"Just help us get him on the ship," Som-Ri said pulling Dib up with her.

Dib watched with amazement as Patches long, frayed ended sleeves began to move on their own, looking almost like little individual tendrils. They wrapped around Radu and lifted him up into the air. Just as Som-Ri had said, it didn't hurt Radu. Patches carried him all the way to the ship and lay him down carefully on one of the medical beds. Dib sat beside him the whole way home with Som-Ri beside him, helping to hook up Radu's pod to an IV.

When they got back to Earth, Patches took extra care to get Radu into bed without hurting him. Dib looked briefly at the damage to the house before fallowing Patches up the stairs to the bedroom. Som-Ri fallowed and told Zim to try to fix the house. Zim sighed but started to do his work with the aide of the houses mainframe computers. Patches lay Radu down carefully.

"Now I expect to hear from him when he wakes up fully. And you, I want to hear more about you," Patches winked at Dib.

Before Dib could say anything, Patches walked through the wall and vanished. Dib sat down beside Radu as Som-Ri hooked him up to all the medical equipment he'd needed. She rested a hand on Dib's shoulder and gave a little squeeze.


	11. Chapter 11

Section11: Does Dib Understand?

(A.N: All I own is this fanfiction, Som-Ri and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. I own nothing!)

Radu blinked a few times, coming out of his pain induced sleep. He looked around the room, but saw no Dib. He bolted upright, whispering Dib's name. He looked around frantically. He couldn't remember how he'd gotten home. All he could remember was that Dib was in danger. He screamed Dib's name, springing from the bed, only to crumple to the floor in a tangled mess of tubes and wires as his side and back erupted in searing pain that temporarily blotted out his vision. When the pain dulled, he heard the door fly open.

"Radu?" Dib's voice cut through the air like a knife that brought his head up quickly.

"Dib? Dib I didn't know where you were. I thought- I thought you were-" Radu's voice was shaky and he looked so innocent that Dib almost couldn't believe that he had ever killed anyone.

"It's okay. I'm here. You saved me remember?" he asked softly as he tried to untangle him.

Som-Ri came into the room and helped Dib get Radu untangled and back into bed. She checked over all the tubes and looked at Radu's wound. Dib sat beside Radu, who gripped his hand and didn't let go.

"I had these horrible dreams. Dreams that scared me," Radu breathed as he looked at Dib, eyes wide and scared.

"Radu, you used to have dreams like that after you killed, remember?" Som-Ri asked, resting a hand on Radu's forearm.

That seemed to snap Radu out of his strange mood. He looked at her with alarm and then at Dib.

"Dib, I-" Radu tried to explain what Som-Ri had meant, maybe even cover it up.

"It's okay. She told me everything. I would have understood if you had just told me it was life or death," Dib squeezed Radu's hand comfortingly.

"Radu, don't move so much. I need to see your wound," Som-Ri commanded as she pulled the gauze off.

His wound was looking better than it had. It was already mostly healed and Dib could see it would make a good scar.

"Dib. When I decided to settle on Earth, I wanted to leave all of that behind. I never wanted you to get tangled up in all of this," Radu sighed, not looking at him.

Dib could only continue to hold Radu's hand. It wasn't much, but it seemed to help calm him down. Radu smiled to himself a little and stroked the back of Dib's hand with his thumb.

"Dib. I was a killer. I am a killer. Nothing will change that. No amount of life saving, retirement, or hiding will ever bring back the hundreds or the thousands I killed," Radu looked at him then.

"I understand. You don't have to justify it. You did it in self-defense. I understand," Dib smiled at him as he traced one of the scars that ran along the back of Radu's hand.

"Dib, it would seem that you are growing quite fond of our little monster," Som-Ri teased, smiling at Dib as she dabbed more medicine on the already healing wound.

"This topic is obviously tender for Radu. Having someone who won't judge, someone who understands, is always helpful," Dib said defensively as he looked at her.

"If you take is easy for a few days, then you should be able to just get back up to speed," Som-Ri said placing a bandage over the wound, "But you need to take it easy."

"I understand. With my back as injured as it is, I don't think I could get up," Radu replied.

"Lean forwards. I'll have a look," Som-Ri said tenderly helping Radu to lean forwards.

"Were you some kind of doctor for the Irken Armada?" Dib asked as he helped support Radu as he hunched himself over.

"No. I would tell the Irken Invaders what to do to minimize casualties, and I'd help distribute our troops based off of my visions. I am as guilty as Radu is. Our hands are stained with the blood of aliens," Som-Ri looked at Radu's back, pressing down tenderly in place.

Radu let out little groans of pain in places as she worked her way across his back. There were some visible bruises in places that looked almost sickly. But Dib knew that bruises looked bad when they were healing.

"It feels like everything is where it should be. I don't think anything is broken. You will be sore for a long time. You were thrown into some pretty solid objects," Som-Ri said as they lay him down.

"Radu, it's my turn to take care of you. If you need anything, you just tell me okay?" Dib said smiling at him.

"Dib, you can't cook," Som-Ri looked at him skeptically.

"I can too…I can make toast," Dib replied.

"Dib, you know Irkens can't eat Earth food. It's too foul for our systems," Radu said as he tenderly held Dib's hand.

Dib remained silent as he registered what Radu had said. Zim had always tried to eat during school, but he'd never been able to eat anything. And Som-Ri started to make their food once she came. Maybe she used Irken ingredients to make their food.

"Dib, I could teach you how to make simple things if you like. But you can also have the house's computer fix something," Som-Ri said she watched Dib's crestfallen face.

"That's true. The computer knows each Irken food by name and composition. It could easily make is as well. You'd just have to tell it to make something," Radu added.

"Then I'll do that. Just until I learn how to cook Irken stuff," Dib said nodding his head slightly.

Radu chuckled and let his head sink back into the pillow. He looked tired. His eyelids drooped a little.

"Som-Ri, we should go help Zim repair the house. I think Radu needs to sleep," Dib said moving towards the door.

"I'll be down in a minute. I just need to make sure everything is all set to leave him alone," Som-Ri smiled at him.

Dib nodded and walked out into the hall. No sooner did he leave, did Radu try getting up. Som-Ri just pushed him back down easily.

"I know you need Dib in order to feel safe, but you can't reopen your wound. If you do, you could bleed to death," Som-Ri said sitting beside him.

"I'm running out of time," Radu closed his eyes for a moment.

"I know. But he seems to be coming around. That's good news at least," Som-Ri tried to lift his spirits.

"He's just realized how much I've done for him. He doesn't love me. He couldn't love me," Radu murmured a little to himself.

"Radu, just try to give him a little more time. I know you're running out of time," Som-Ri smiled at him, but in her eyes, Radu could see worry.

"Why do you care? After what I did to you, you have no right to care about me," Radu asked.

"It's true that I don't trust you like I used too, but I can also understand. I can't let you go off unprotected or alone through all of this. We've been friends since we were little," she replied standing.

Radu watched her go. He was tired, like Dib had said, but with his mind so muddled over what Som-Ri had said and what he was going to do about Dib, Radu doubted he was going to sleep anytime soon. He laid his head down on the pillow and closed his eyes, but his mind wouldn't shut down.

Downstairs, Dib had reached the bottom of the stairs. Zim was helping a metal claw lower one of the metal planks into place. He looked over at him.

"Radu's sleeping. I came to help," Dib said moving to help him lower the plank.

"You can help get the Nano-bots. They'll make all the metal one solid piece," Zim said, pointing at a spray bottle.

While Dib was spraying down some of the metal that the many metal claws were holding in place, Som-Ri came down the stairs and whispered something to Zim. Zim looked at her worried, but she only rested her hand on his shoulder. Zim moved the metal piece into place and wrapped his arms around her.

"Is Radu okay?" Dib asked, worry tightening his chest.

"Radu? He's fine," Zim asked looking at him a moment, Som-Ri looking back at him a little startled.

"It just seemed like something happened," Dib said nervously.

"No, no. He's resting. I'm just a little worried about him is all. And you of course too. This could happen again," Som-Ri said, going to help Dib repair the wall.

"You mean the kidnapping? Or Radu getting hurt?" Dib asked, alarmed to think that either one could happen.

"Both. Radu is a very hated Irken. He has made many alien enemies throughout the galaxy. It doesn't surprise me that some of them found him," Zim rubbed the back of his head.

"But how will they ever find us out here?" Dib asked, thinking about how far Earth was from any other inhabited planet.

"These two who kidnapped you found you didn't they?" Zim stated, looking at Dib as though he had said something stupid.

"What he means is that if Radu still makes long distance calls to anything outside of this solar system, or even places an order for something off planet, than you guys could be tracked down," Som-Ri said, spraying a few panels.

"Radu came here trying to forget his past, to move on and start over. He'll be fine," Dib said seriously, spraying more panels.


	12. Chapter 12

Section 12: Radu's Choice

(A.N: All I own is this fanfiction, Som-Ri and Radu. Invader Zim is not mine. Enjoy the final section of Once Human. I might do the sequel... maybe.)

It had been two days since Dib had been kidnapped and Radu had nearly been killed saving him. Radu had healed remarkably fast, and was already walking around the house. Radu still taught Dib how to use his own pod, but it was getting to be less of a chore every time Dib tried.

Radu looked up at Dib from across the kitchen table. Dib was reading one of the books Radu had gotten him after his change. Dib was too engrossed in the book to notice Radu, at first. Radu couldn't help but feel affection for him. The way his eyes flicked from one line to the next, the way his slender fingers turned each page with care. Radu also loved the way Dib had slightly tilted his head, exposing his neck. Radu had to pull his eyes away as he felt his self-control slipping. He couldn't risk anything with Dib that would make him leave.

Radu took another drink and set the glass down on the table, trying to get reabsorbed into his own virtual display, but he couldn't. He was more interested in what Dib was thinking. What the story was like and why Dib found it so entrancing. Radu found himself looking fondly at him again. This time, Dib did look up. He looked puzzled.

"What?" Dib asked quizzically.

"Nothing. I was just marveling at how stunning you've become. Even you sitting there reading has made me unable to work," Radu rested his head on his hand and smiled at him.

Dib tried to say something, only to found that he nervously laughed and looked back down at his book. But when he glanced back up at Radu, he was still staring at him. Dib could feel himself flush a little as he tried to pick up where he'd left off. But he could feel Radu staring at him. He glanced up again, but Radu had turned his attention back to his work, looking tired and bored. Radu had been kind and left more than enough room in his bed for Dib to sleep in it too, but Dib had been more worried about hurting Radu than anything else and insisted on sleeping on a spare bed that Radu had had the house's computer bring up.

"Hey Radu?" Dib asked, putting his book on the table.

"Hm?" Radu asked, looking up, eye ridges raised.

"Why didn't you bring up a spare bed before? That way your bed wouldn't be so crowded," Dib asked, leaning over the table.

"It's easier to sleep when I feel you breathing. I can feel you sleeping, and it lulls me a little. It helps my mind quiet down enough to sleep and gives me peace," Radu replied getting a faraway look to his eyes.

"How did you get to sleep before me?" Dib asked.

"I had a very hard time. I would lay awake for hours, unable to stop thinking and too alert and nervous to sleep as fully as I needed. Often times, I wouldn't even be able to sleep at all," Radu smiled at him, as if he was telling a joke.

But something in his tone told Dib that he wasn't lying. Maybe that's what had happened the first time Radu had climbed into bed beside him. Only, he had been haunted by something that had happened years ago. Truth be told, Dib liked sleeping next to Radu, and the past few nights had been hell without him.

"Hey Dib, I have to go do something for about five minutes. I'll be right back," Radu looked at him with a kind of sadness in his eyes.

"Oh, okay. I'll be here," Dib said, not understanding why Radu looked so sad, or why he put a time limit to his absence.

Radu closed his virtual display and placed the hover frame on the table, smiling sadly at Dib before he walked out of the room. Dib watched him go, not understanding what he was going to do, but opened his book and tried to read. But every time he finished a paragraph, be looked up at the doorway, expecting Radu to come back in and smile at him. But Radu didn't come back, and five minute came, and went. Dib began to feel like something was wrong. He put his book down and tapped a finger on the table.

He stood and walked into the living room. No Radu. He walked up stairs and called his name, but no one answered. Deep down, Dib could feel panic rising. Something was wrong. The minute he called out Radu's name, no matter what he was doing or where he was, Radu would have come running, or answered. He opened all the doors he came to, but Radu wasn't anywhere to be seen. Then he came to bathroom and opened the door.

Radu was slumped against the bathtub, his blood seeping out of a gash on his wrist, pooling on the floor. His pod was giving off a faint red glow. Held in his right hand was a bloody pocket knife bearing the Irken symbol. Dib just stood there in the doorway, paralyzed by the scene before him. Crying out in alarm, he grabbed a towel and tried to press it against Radu's wrist to stop the bleeding. He had had a reason to worry. But why had Radu done this?

"Radu? Radu don't you dare give up on me! Come on! Answer me, Dammit!" Dib cried as he tried frantically to stop the bleeding.

"Dib?" Zim's voice sliced through the silence and made Dib jump.

He looked up at the door way, his eyes stinging as he tried to hold back his sick worried feeling twisting his insides. Som-Ri and Zim were standing in the doorway, gaping at what lay before them.

"Don't just stand there! Help me!" Dib shouted at them, the tears welling up.

"Dib, wait," Som-Ri tried to stop Dib, placing her hands over his as he tried to stop the bleeding.

"Why? Radu will die if I don't stop the bleeding!" Dib shouted, the tears threatened to spill over.

"Dib-" Zim tried, but Som-Ri wanted to handle this.

"Dib, I can't let you save Radu unless you love him," she interrupted Zim, looking Dib in the eyes.

"What? What are you saying?" Dib asked confused, looking from the green stained towel up to Som-Ri.

"To a bound Irken, the happiness of their mate is everything. If they feel that their mate would be happier with someone else, they will take their own life to free them," Som-Ri said, the same saddened smile on her face as the one Radu had worn only minutes before when he's left Dib in the kitchen.

"Radu took his life, or is trying too, because he feels that you are unhappy being with him," Zim said looking down at Dib like he was disappointed in him.

"But that's not true!" Dib exclaimed, the tears spilling over.

"Why Dib? Why is it not true?" Som-Ri asked, a small smile sneaking across her face as she glanced over Dib's shoulder at Zim.

"If he dies, then I'll be all alone. I-I…I do love him," Dib cried as he lowered his head down to Radu's hand, "I-I just didn't know. I didn't know! I won't be happy if he dies. I fell in love with him, but I took too long!"

"Then move away and let me work," Som-Ri said smiling up at Zim, who smiled back at her.

Radu opened his eyes. But it hurt to do that. It hurt all over. He turned his head from side to side, trying to figure out what had happened. The last thing he remembered was thinking that what he was about to do was for Dib's good, and slicing the knife across his wrist, watching the blood start seeping out and feeling light headed, dropping against the tub. On one side was an IV connected to his arm. On the other, Dib sat staring at him worried.

"Dib, what have you done?" Radu croaked, his throat very dry, "You aren't happy being bound to me. I was trying to free you."

"He has something to tell you," Som-Ri said, smiling at him from her place by the door.

"Radu, I understand what you tried to do, but I wouldn't be happy if you killed yourself. I didn't understand how I felt about you until you tried to leave me. I wouldn't be happy with anyone but you. I-I-I love you," Dib flushed several shades at once, and leaned in quickly, giving Radu a quick kiss on the lips.

Radu looked at Dib, eyes wide, not quite understanding what had happened. But then he smiled. The one thing he had thought would never happen, did happen. Dib returned his feelings, and had told him. Though he would have liked it better if Dib had told him before he sliced his wrist open.

"I think I've found my reason for living. I just wish I had known sooner. I'll be hurting for quite a while," Radu sighed, grasping Dib's hand gently in his own.

"Lucky for you, Radu, I had a vision about what you did and Zim and I rushed over as fast as we could," Som-Ri said, placing a hand on Dib's shoulder.

"I never expected to see Dib cry though. That was a surprise. And he loves you. It all worked out in the end," Zim said standing in the doorway.

Som-Ri shot Zim a little glare that made his smirk fade. Radu looked at Dib, his face falling. He tightened his grip on Dib's hand and stroked it with his thumb.

"I didn't mean to make you cry. I never would have tried to take my own life if I had known how you felt," Radu sighed, resting his head against the pillows.

"How many times are you wind up needing IV's and bed rest?" Zim asked looking down at him, amused, as he put an arm around Som-Ri's shoulders.

"Well, I hope not to anymore. Getting Dib back was my top priority, so I got injured to save him, and then this was my own fault. I don't like lying in bed healing. Someone activate my Quick-Heal," Radu said looking up at the three by his bed.

"Can't you just activate it by thought?" Dib asked.

"No, this is something that has to be done manually, or else all of the medicine stored in the pod can be used up before a critical emergency happens," Som-Ri said as she leaned over Radu and activated it.

Radu sighed as his pod's spots glowed a faint red color for a brief minute. He smiled at Dib and stroked the back of his hand.

"As long as I have you Dib, and you're happy, I can't ask for more," Radu sighed as Dib smiled down at him, flushing a little.


End file.
